#It looks really nice!!!! I know the 9 inch plush has the side mouth smile Sonky is known for

[thebuttsmcgee]

Tails GE 12 inch plush......is the question....

[hansolmates]

hoshi; vowels and veracity (m)

summary: after a blind date that makes you feel like a giddy teenager all over again, you’re forced to grow up and take a chance when you realize that special someone is your daughter’s kindergarten teacher. pairing: teacher!soonyoung x single mother!reader genre/warnings: fluffity fluff nuggets, humor, a lil bit of angst when yn panics, *steve rogers voice* language! alcohol, unprotected sex (wrap the pickle before u tickle), face sitting w/c: 5.2k a/n: i really have nothing to say about this but i’ve been thinking about going back to school all week so this manifested. enjoy a lil sexy but sweet hosh💕 

“Y-you,” another giggle and the press of wet lips to the sensitive spot of your neck, “stop, Soonyoung! I’m ticklish there!” 

You feel a pout imprint itself in the sweet spot between your ear and your jaw, and you sigh at the rumble of his lips against your skin, “But you taste so sweet, baby,” he croons, and you’re practically melting between the door with how much Soonyoung has pressed himself against you, all of himself. 

“What if I don’t wanna stop, pretty girl?” he husks against your soft skin, whispering things in your ear that aren’t for the faint of heart. In your haste to keep a firm grip, one hand goes to his clothes and the other nips at the undercut of his midnight black hair, “what if I just open the door right now and we slip right in, and then I slip right in you?” 

Your breath hitches and suddenly your core feels like a timebomb, ready to combust. 

Go on a date, Joshua says. He’s a sweet guy, Joshua says. He’s a friend of Joshua’s, so you know going into this blind date that at the very least, he wasn’t a serial killer. But what Joshua failed to tell you going into this was how much Kwon Soonyoung packed and how much of a temptor in disguise he is. 

“I really would love to invite you in,” it looks like it pains Soonyoung to admit this, as he presses his forehead to yours and the edge of his fingers dig into your crushed emerald velvet number, “but tomorrow’s the first day of work and I am not emotionally prepared. But, I do want to see you again. I had a great time.” 

The previous mood melting into the night sky, you reluctantly let go of the lapels of his tweed blazer. Unable to suppress your crestfallen smile you nod, “That’s fine,” you reply, inching away from him to send him a pointed look, “I wouldn’t have gone inside anyway. I don’t put out on the first date,” you cross your arms in an attempt to feign nonchalance.  

Which isn’t a lie, although if Soonyoung had asked you two minutes ago to come inside for a cup of tea, you wouldn’t have argued. He is just that tempting. Said date raises an eyebrow in response, tucking a strand of loose hair behind your ear at the defiance in your eyes. “Oh?” he echoes, “then what date do you put out?” 

“Date seven.” 

“Lucky seven,” he grins, “so if we go on a date every day this week by Friday we should be good to go. How do you feel about steak?” 

You slap his shoulder in his response, and the giggle that erupts from his lips in response has you feeling dizzy and giddy with excitement. Soonyoung has you feeling like a college freshman all over again, floating like Cloud 9 and drunk in anticipation. You peck one, two more kisses on his lips. He tastes like the peach champagne you shared and his own scent as he pulls you in for a much longer, much hotter kiss. 

“Good luck on your first day,” you mumble against his lips, vaguely remembering that he’s a teacher in a school nearby. 

“Mm, text me when you get home,” and with a final kiss to your forehead he unlocks his door, leaving you warm and full of heart-eyes on his front porch. 

The walk home, more like float home, has you feeling all parts exhausted and hopeful for the days to come. For the first time in a long time you feel young and unbridled, thrumming with excitement. Now you’re just playing with your phone, waiting to exchange goodnight texts. 

“Nari’s asleep,” when you walk into your shared apartment, you spot a sleepy Seungkwan on his laptop and sprawled across your couch. “How was it?” 

“It was reealllly nice,” you’re still a little wine tipsy, drunk on the taste of Merlot and a certain someone’s kisses, “he was really sweet, and surprisingly sexy.” 

“Did you get dicked down?” Seungkwan asks only the most important questions. 

You scoff, flopping down on the couch next to him, “As if, we have work in the morning.” 

“Speaking of work, are you sure you’re not able to drop off Nari to school tomorrow? It’s her first day of kindergarten.” 

“I can’t,” saying it feels absolutely awful, but a single mother has to work extra hard to keep her and her daughter happy. 

“It’s fine,” Seungkwan easily waves you off and runs a hand through his fluffy auburn hair, “her favorite Uncle is there, anyway.” 

“Hey,” you lightly punch his arm, “I’ve already talked Nari through it. I’m cooking a big breakfast tomorrow—chocolate chip pancakes, duh, and taking a million pictures before we have to part ways. I packed a little Kit-Kat for her lunch with a sweet note. When I come back in time for dinner I promised her pizza from her favorite parlor and she can tell me everything about her day.” 

“So, you’re bribing her with food.” 

“Sue me, it’s every parent’s weak spot.” 

Seungkwan stretches his arms, cradling you between his chest. You sigh into his clean linen scent, feeling sleepy. “Yeah, I’ve bribed her with my Switch once or twice,” he admits softly, eyes also drooping, “but you’re a great mother regardless. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything tomorrow.” 

“Thanks, Kwannie,” you sigh, feeling more at ease. 

Nari is the light of you and Seungkwan’s life. Five years ago, you promised yourself that if you were more than financially stable and still sick with baby fever, you would adopt. You didn’t want to find a romantic partner for the sole purpose of having a child, you could easily do that on your own. And that you did, you researched and visited foster homes off in the countryside. 

In a little town off the coast of the shore was where you met Nari, only six months old and full with cherub cheeks and eyes that sparkled like the moon and stars. You fell in love with her instantly. Fast forward five years later and she’s the reason you wake up every morning and work hard every day. Seungkwan being your best friend, also wanted rights as the godfather and therefore is also part of your perfect family picture. 

You and Seungkwan sleep warmly tonight, both excited to share yet another year of Nari’s milestones. 

“And then Mr. Kwon said I was an ‘ace’ with my vowels!” Nari has a string of cheese hanging from her chin, and you don’t bat an eye as you reach to pat it away with a napkin. 

“I wouldn’t expect any less, baby,” you coo, carding a hand through her hair so her bangs don’t get caught in her meal, “remember when mommy and Uncle Kwannie taught you the vowels this summer? We sang that song.” 

“Yes! I sang the same song and showed everyone how ‘ta do it,” your heart is swelling with pride, and you fight the urge to tear up because Seungkwan’s already showing signs of waterworks from his side of the table, “I read a book Mr. Kwon gave me today and he said he’s so impressed I read at a Level B.” 

You quirk your brows at the new jargon. You certainly don’t know what it means to be a Level B, but it makes Nari happy and that’s all that matters. Wiping the orange grease off her lips, you muse that you must get in contact with her teacher one of these days.

“What’s a Level B?” Seungkwan similarly looks stumped at the new vocabulary. 

“I don’t know!” Nari shrugs, but nevertheless her teacher’s attention has her glowing. 

You giggle, “I’m so happy for you, baby.” 

“I’m excited to go back tomorrow, I made a new friend! His name is Jeonghan and he helped me with my numbers today. He called my bows cute.” 

“Cute?” Seungkwan perks up from his stupor, “of course you’re cute, Nari. So cute that you’re too good for this Jeonghwan boy.” 

“Jeonghan, Uncle Kwannie,” she pouts when Seungkwan scoffs, in favor of shoving half a slice in his mouth. She turns to you, tugging on your blazer, “Mama, can I go watch TV now? I finished my homework and I wanna see the new Ladybug and Cat Noir!” 

“Of course,” you pull away her plate, gesturing for her to go to the living room. 

“Thank you mama,” and she’s bouncing off her seat, pushing her chair in and off to watch Miraculous Ladybug. 

You sigh, “They grow up so fast.” 

Seungkwan’s eyes widen at your age-old phrase, the words reminding him oddly of his parents when they used to talk down to him. “And here we are, aging twice as fast,” Seungkwan bemoans, already starting to feel the greasy food settle in his stomach. “We used to eat a whole pie! We could eat absolute garbage back in college and here I am weak at two slices—oh my god, am I having a ‘back in my day’ moment? We need to go out. I need to go out. I’ve been practicing consonants and vowels all day. I need a boyfriend,” he playfully narrows his eyes at you, “I need a boyfriend like yours, sweet and sexy.” 

“Sorry,” you stick out your tongue, “but he’s mine.” 

Perfect timing, Soonyoung’s name pops up on your phone. You two have been texting sporadically throughout the day, making plans for your next date. The two of you are going to watch a drive-in movie, a situation that screams teenage-back-of-the-truck-sex but the movie is a much anticipated favorite of yours and you genuinely want to watch it. 

Soonyoung is full of humor and laughs, getting you to smile and relax at the right times during work and always manages to keep you on your toes whenever he says something flirtatious. 

“Are you gonna introduce him to Nari?” 

You stop typing, and look up towards your beautiful little girl in the living room. Her hair is out of her pigtails, drooping tiredly like she is. Her cheek is pressed against her favorite plush cat, fighting for consciousness because she’s waiting for Marinette to save the day. Your heart swells with affection. 

“Dunno,” you shrug, trying not to think too hard about it, “we’re not that serious right now.” 

You’re absolutely winded. You finished work early today, due to the fact that came in early so you could clock out and pick Nari up from school. Despite the fact that Nari says it’s okay for you not to pick her up, you can’t allow it and you want to be the one who she runs into when she comes out the door. 

“Who do you think she’s gonna hug first?” Seungkwan’s elbowing you, baiting you. “Because this morning she gave me a hug and three kisses before I dropped her off.” 

“Three?” you seethe in annoyance, “three kisses is our thing! Two on the cheek and one on the forehead!” 

The two of you slowly steep together, waiting for the colorful blue door to the kindergarten area to file out. The heel of your shoes are digging into the grass, probably making a needle-like  indentation in the dirt as you struggle not to seep into the lawn. You feel like you’re going to flop on your heels, wishing you could go run back into the car and find your flip-flops from last month’s beach trip. But before you could debate on the run the bell rings, and you’re on livewire when you see the students start to file out. 

Your smile grows ten-fold when you see Nari’s jaw drop in surprise, seeing you waiting for her. She fists whatever is in her hands in surprise, breaking into the cutest smile as she screams, “mama!” 

And you’re ready to hold your arms out and throw her around in circles, until you see who follows right behind her. 

Kwon Soonyoung is Nari’s kindergarten teacher. Kwon Soonyoung with his hair down and untextured, wearing a mint polo and looking nothing like the date you had the other night. He looks absolutely soft and so, you are weak. 

Kwon Soonyoung, the sexy deviant who sends you questionable texts and sends you funny puppy videos, is staring right at you and utterly confused when Nari rams straight into your hip. 

Momentarily distracted, you pepper your pretty daughter in kisses (all three of them, two cheeks and one forehead) and tell her how much you’ve missed her. Clearly she doesn’t miss you as much, as she’s waving around a picture she drew during playtime, one of her and Jeonghan in the sandbox. 

“Really, Nari,” Seungkwan mutters under his breath, shamelessly vocalizing his opinion on a five-year old, “can’t you choose a different friend?” 

“Seungkwan!” you chide, but he pointedly annoys you when Nari finally enters Seungkwan’s embrace. He takes extra time to cuddle her, obviously jealous that another boy has taken refuge in your little Nari’s heart. 

The moment is so sweet and simple you have no choice but to revel in it and take out your phone to snap a photo. 

“Mama!” she pops her head off of Seungkwan’s shoulder, “come meet Mr. Kwon!”

And she’s tugging your hand, only you’re much stronger and you stay firmly planted on the grass. Heck, you even sacrifice your shoes by digging your heels in for extra measure.Your eyes widen in panic, but Nari doesn’t notice because she’s paving a path of dirt with her lime green light-up sneakers, trying to get you to move. You nearly forgot your latest tryst is your daughter’s teacher, and you never told him you have a kid. 

But within seconds, there’s an audible slam and the three of you are shattered from your bubble. Turning to the noise the heavy navy door is now locked shut, all the students dismissed for the day. The crowd is gone. Soonyoung is gone. 

Seungkwan’s eyes dart between the closed door and you, the pieces clicking. His mouth forms a little ‘o’ and he nods in understanding. “He thinks I’m your baby daddy.” 

The two of you point out each other like the Spiderman meme. “He thinks you’re my baby daddy,” you echo, horror marrying your face. 

“Mama? What’s a baby daddy?” 

“Shh, Nari—” he picks up Nari in one swoop, mouthing a go to you as he leads her to the car. 

All alone on the grass, you panic as you watch your family grow smaller and smaller as they enter the parking lot. Soonyoung’s just behind that door, right? Looking left and right to assure no one is going to think you’re being that parent and harassing the teacher within the first week of school, you bound up the steps to knock on the door. Your knocks clang heavily, echoing against the building. 

Ten seconds pass. Nothing. 

You deflate, pulling out your phone to shoot Soonyoung a quick text. 

You: hey, can you come out for a bit so i can explain? Please

A minute passes. He leaves you on read. Defeated, you slump against the door. This day is really a whirlwind on your mental state. All you wanted today was some extra time off work, Nari’s three kisses, and maybe a goodnight text from Soonyoung if you were lucky. 

The door suddenly flips open, and you’re braced against someone’s hands. 

“Whoa, you okay?”

Your face crumples in relief when it’s Soonyoung that’s come out to respond to you. He’s bracing your weight by holding your arms between his hands, although keeping a respectable distance between the upper half of your bodies. It makes you a little upset, but you understand. Once you’re stable, he lets you go and leans away from you.

“Why are you waiting out here?” he asks pointedly, looking at you up and down. You seem terribly overdressed in your coral pinstripe suit, mismatching with Soonyoung’s apple sauce stains. 

“Why do you think I’m waiting out here?”

“And if I close the door again?” he retorts suddenly. 

“Then I’ll follow you home.” 

A beat passes, whatever expression he conveys on his face is practiced and primed. You have a terrible time trying to decipher his blankness. Working with kids probably does that to an adult. “Come in,” he says neutrally, and you wordlessly follow him into his classroom. 

The room is decorated beautifully, with rainbows and glitter. It’s also surprisingly organized, all the crayons in place and the play area free of stray toys. Your eyes instantly search for Nari’s desk, and a small smile fits on your face as you trace her handmade name tag. 

“Normally, I don’t let parents in my room until it’s Back to School Night,” Soonyoung says, leaning against his desk. It makes you terribly nervous, knowing the ball is in your court and he’s waiting for you to make a move. His carefree, easy going nature is nowhere to be found, and all you see is walls and a mean poker face. He pulls up the sleeves of his polo, exposing pale, strong arms. Your mouth waters a little (you can’t help it!) and you immediately reach for a bottle of water in your purse. “So, what is it you have to say?” 

“Seungkwan’s not my baby daddy,” you blurt, and you immediately blanch when Soonyoung’s eyes widen. “Wow uh. I didn’t mean to say it like that.” 

“But you did say it like that,” Soonyoung replies slowly, “no child just doesn’t give three kisses to someone who isn’t their father.” 

“I only called him my baby daddy because he said it first,” you grumble, almost childishly, “and Nari’s a baby, of course she’s going to give three kisses to anyone that feeds her and coddles her.” 

“It sounds like an excuse.” 

“It sounds like I’m freaking out because you keep talking back and forth like this!” you cry, slapping your hands against your thigh. You don’t have to look in a mirror to know that you’re quickly getting annoyed, your face morphing into a shade of embarrassment. You can’t tell if this is amusing him or this is a real interrogation. “Let me explain, Soonyoung!” 

He says your name slowly, deliberately. And then, “do you want to take a break in the Calm Down Corner?” 

“The—the what?” Soonyoung’s eyes flicker to a corner at the far end of the room. The radiator is decorated in a sky blue wallpaper, and there’s a yoga mat on the floor. There are chairs next to a desk filled with coloring pages, decorated with fairy lights. Filling three of the chairs are various stuffed animals, a tiger, a cat, and a panda, all dressed as doctors. It’s a child’s therapy corner. “You gotta be kidding me.” 

He raises a brow, and—is that a smile on his lips? “Then explain, why are you here?” 

“Because I think I really like you,” you confess, frustration melting away to reveal the uneasy upturn on your lips. You lied when Seungkwan asked if you would ever consider introducing Soonyoung to Nari. In a different world, you would’ve loved to take the time to take Nari to the museum and introduce Soonyoung there. They’d definitely bond over their love for tigers. “Seungkwan is my best friend, and helps me take care of Nari. I adopted her five years ago.” 

Something softens in Soonyoung’s eyes, and the air feels much more relaxed. But his dark brows remain knit together, and he looks at you with confused eyes. “Then if you like me so much, why didn’t you tell me you had a daughter?”

“Because kids can be deal breakers,” you admit, and the colorful classroom feels smaller as you hug yourself. “I just, wanted you to like me first.” 

It’s the primary reason why it’s taken you so long to date. Sure, there’d be a fling here and there, but nothing that feels as tangible as Soonyoung is. You’re not old enough to find a partner that wouldn’t blink at the sign of children, yet you’re still at that weird age threshold where a partner could immediately run for the hills at the mention of one. Nothing will top Nari, she’s number one in your heart, but the small selfish part wanted you to put the focus on yourself for just one night. 

“You don’t have to hide, I want every part of your life no matter how long we have,” he assures you gently, firmly without an ounce of regret. Soonyoung opens his arms, and you cry in relief when you get to collapse in the scent of his cologne. You tuck your head in the crook of his neck, slightly sweaty from whatever activities he needs to do with the kids, but you don’t mind. His voice is quiet, melting in your ears, “and I really like you too. I really like Nari as well, she’s a great kid.” 

“She is, isn’t she?” 

You two pull away, and he swipes a thumb under your eyes in case some tears manage to escape. “So, Friday? Movie?” 

“It’s a date.” 

“Where’s Nari?” the question is huffed against your breath as you’re pressed between your freshly washed bedspread and Soonyoung’s body. He takes care in making sure the zipper of your delicate dress doesn’t get caught in the rush, easily slipping your dress off and throwing it on your desk chair. 

“At Seungkwan’s, why?” 

His cheshire cat eyes glow under the moonlight, positively devious. “It’s date seven,” he announces sweetly. His gaze betrays his saccarine reply, a look that only tells you that Soonyoung plans to fuck you five ways to Sunday, and you’ll gladly let him. 

You sit up on your elbows, enjoying the show as Soonyoung quickly sheds his clothing. It’s ungraceful, exciting. Tonight was a simple carnival date, easily making you feel like a giddy college student all over again. Soonyoung won you five Pokemon keychains today, you could put a whole party on your hand. 

“It’s actually date six,” you tease, tilting your head as his pants finally come off, revealing black boxer briefs that snug deliciously around the waist. 

“Oh, okay,” he looks at you like you’ve spoken God’s word, reaching to pick up his shirt, “so you don’t want my dick fucking you raw tonight? Okay, I see how it is,” he pretends to put on his clothing, jabbing a thumb out the door. 

You have the audacity to giggle, pulling him over by the waistband, “Come here so I can make an exception.”

You don’t know what it is that makes you want you want to give everything to this man. Heck, five years ago you didn’t even want a man as an excuse to have kids. But as he nudges you in all the right places and places you on top of him, you know this man will treat you like an absolute treasure. Every kiss is laced with smiles and sweetness, filled with vigor and vivacity that fills you up and leaves you afloat. 

He takes care of you first, unwilling to let you budge as he places your core over his face. He makes quick, but effective use of his tongue and fingers, making sure you’re nice and sensitive for his future plans. You’re practically throbbing with pleasure, vibrating from every cell of your body. Within minutes he’s glistening in your arousal, and he pulls you down so you’re lined up with his crotch. It’s involuntary when you pulse against his member, your body shamefully alerting you that it’s desperate with need, and the remedy is right under you. 

Soonyoung looks more satisfied than you, eager to please you. Without warning, he stuffs two fingers in your mouth, “You pretty, pretty girl,” you are keen at the attention, your body is glowing a radiant rose. 

Your tongue rolls against his fingers, sticky and tasting of your arousal. Tilting your hips up you let Soonyoung pull his member out, lining it against your entrance. Feeling the soft tip brush against your delicate folds, you moan against his mouth. With a little ‘pop’ he releases you, lips shiny and parted. 

“I hope you don’t think I’m some kind of hit-it-n’quit-it kind of guy,” he noses the sensitive spot of your jawline, which distracts you momentarily when the plush tip nudges your folds, coaxing you to unite. “Because after tonight, I’m definitely keeping you. Forever.” 

The reply that dances on your tongue is overtaken by your whines when Soonyoung slips in fully, forcing your body to clench tightly against his. You take him, all of him. You feel wet and sticky and hot and swollen with affection as Soonyoung praises you for taking him so well. His pace is firm and passionate, short nails digging deliciously into your hips for leverage as he makes sure to fill you to the brim. 

He’s right, tonight is far from being a means to an end. You feel like you can have nights like this the rest of your life. And when the both of you finish and you’re pulling the covers over one another, you finally manage to grasp the reply that was nearly forgotten. 

Pressing a kiss to his jaw you whisper, “I’m keeping you, too.” 

“So, how long can we keep this a secret for?”

“Ideally? Ten months. Realistically, I’d say Christmas.” 

“Why Christmas?” 

“Because I know you’re going to be dying to get Nari a Christmas present.” 

Soonyoung props his elbow on the pillow, looking at you petulantly. “I could say it’s a good behavior reward. She’s been racking up those gold stars during morning meetings, babe. She’s not even trying.” 

“That’s my girl,” you coo, rolling over to lean your head on his chest. Light has long flooded into your apartment, seeping through your curtains and reflecting on your white duvet. Soonyoung looks absolutely fluffy and well rested, and you can’t help but reach to pat down the ebony bird’s nest atop his head. 

The two of you lay like that for a little bit, playing with each other’s cold feet under the covers and relishing under the touch of bare skin to bare skin. You remind yourself that you need to take Joshua out to dinner one of these days, as he managed the inevitable and set you up with  an amazing partner. 

“Breakfast?” Soonyoung pops the question easily, “let’s get steak.”

“Steak isn’t eaten for breakfast.” 

“Then can I eat you for breakfast?” 

You snort, hiding under the covers while Soonyoung attempts to tickle you. The whole act in itself feels wholly innocent despite the fact that you’re both naked and smell like sweat and sex. Just as you feel Soonyoung’s head dip under the covers to meet you at your chest, the door swings open. 

“Mama!” 

The previously warm room feels like wickedly sharp ice, freezing you to your spot as you clutch the covers closer to your chest. “Baby!” you cry exasperatedly, flinching when she throws all her weight on you. She’s still in her ladybug pajamas from last night, hair falling out of her braid. 

She lifts her head from your breast to give you an adorable one-toothed grin. You try your best to maintain eye-contact, but Nari has impeccable vision. Her grin evolves into a full-on beam when she finds your bed partner.

“Mr. Kwon!” she’s squealing, clamoring over your lap. You do a double-take when you see Soonyoung sitting next to you, wearing a t-shirt. Where on earth did he get that?

Soonyoung’s eyes reduce to crescents at his (secretly) favorite student. “Good morning, Nari-ah. Had a fun time at your Uncle’s house?” 

“Nari,” you force your daughter down to stand on the hardwood, giving her a stern look, “give Mr. Kwon some space, it’s really early and it’s the weekend.” 

Knitting her brows together, she looks between the two of you, “But you two don’t have any space.” 

You wince at her perception, and nudge yourself away so you’re pressed against your nightstand. The oakwood corner digs painfully into your back. 

“We were haviång a very special parent meeting,” you fight the urge to cry when Soonyoung turns on his teacher's voice, sending your daughter a very convincing smile. You watch as your daughter’s eyes go wide, probably feeling very special that her teacher came all the way to her house to have a meeting. “You’ve been doing so well during the read-alouds that I had to tell your mama in person!” 

“I told you mama!” Nari juts out her chest, and you lean over to kiss the crown of her head. “But Mr. Kwon, why are you having it in mama’s room?” 

“Her room is the warmest!” he says like it’s the most obvious thing, his and Nari’s eyes widening simultaneously as he gestures to the open window. “The sun travels directly into your bedroom in the morning, and those rays send heat—”

“Mr. Kwon,” your voice is as steady as it can be, and  you frown when Soonyoung wiggles his brows. You already know he’s thinking of three separate ways you can use the term Mr. Kwon in private, but you’re not having any of that, “shouldn’t we uh, wrap up this… meeting?” 

“I wanna stay,” Nari glowers, obviously nosy as to what you two are talking about.

“I know baby. We just gotta finish up the meeting, okay? Can you—” you cut  yourself off when Seungkwan finally decides to make his appearance, eyes wide at commotion he’s created. He’s in matching pajamas, ridiculously red as he bends down to scoop up Nari. Absolutely sweating and as red as his clothes, his eyes dart between the two of you. You could care less that Seungkwan’s eyes have bags under their bags, and was probably too tired to catch her when she ran inside the house. No, Seungkwan doesn’t deserve the title of godfather anymore. 

“Nari! You can’t interrupt teacher meetings,” Seungkwan pretends to scold, and Nari turns her head so she can hide in her Uncle’s shoulder. 

Knowing that Nari can’t see a thing, you mouth a very explicit I will kill you to your best friend, and he immediately mouths an apology to the both of you as he ushers himself out the door. You wait ten seconds for your daughter to be out of ear shot, before dropping the blanket from your neck and throwing yourself against the pillows. 

But Soonyoung’s chuckling, pressing a litany of kisses all over your bare body in an attempt to comfort you. Instead of reveling in his lazy morning touch, you want to disappear between the sheets, never to be seen. What will the PTO moms say when they find out? How will you stop Nari from telling Jeonghan, and therefore Jeonghan telling the entire kindergarten population? Why isn’t Soonyoung freaking out about this? Instead, he favors to taste your body, in between kisses muttering something about it being kismet that Nari so happened to see right as you were discussing the secrecy of your relationship. Ten years from now, your daughter will be horrified when she realizes that no, teachers don’t normally give housecalls in your mother’s bed.

Your boyfriend pinches your thigh, regarding you with mirth in his eyes. 

“So, that means I can buy her a Christmas present now, right?” 

[maybe-your-left]

Window Panes - Forever

We made it! 

Here is the Window Panes Masterlist and my Masterlist for all my other fics. 

Summary: A cool breeze nipped at your exposed legs, causing goosebumps to erupt over your skin. You were curled into your comforter, comfy and safe, your cheek pressed against your pillow. Lips pursed and a small amount of drool seeping into the fabric. A creak came from the corner of your room, slightly rousing you from your slumber. You glanced around, your drooping eyelids barely taking in the scene. In your sleep riddled state, you didn't see him, his large figure stalking towards you. The whites of his eyes shining in the moonlight, it wasn't until you felt a palm slide up your side. Following the natural contours of your body, the warmth emanating from it lulling you to sleep once again. A dip in the mattress, the springs creaking under the weight. 

Hot breath fanned over your neck, soft lips pressing onto the back of your ear. A deep hum filling your senses, you sighed. Cuddling back into the figure, wanting to get closer to the warm entity. A low chuckle sounded behind you, and then... 

Nothing. 

TW/CW: This is dark shit, like explicitly horrible shit happens in this. However, I enjoy reading dark fics, and I super loved Stalker Clyde by @clumsycopy​ & was inspired by the oneshot EOS by @thetorturerwrites and I wanted to write something with the sameish tone for Halloween. NSFW, Violence, Murder, Non-con elements, Domestic Violence, Surgery, Explicit sex, oral sex, anal sex, sex toys, miscarriage, mental manipulation, stockholm syndrome, waterboarding, forced feeding, Animal abuse (just a brief mention, I do not go into any detail). 

“Is it-Are we rolling?” 

“Yeah, we’re rolling.” 

“Okay, great,” a sigh of relief. 

You shifted in your chair, smoothing back your hair and itching the microphone that was attached to your shirt collar. Crossing and recrossing your legs, you should’ve worn pants, a skirt was a stupid idea with these boots. You gave a weak smile to the woman across from you, her white teeth flashing the cameras all around the sound stage. 

“Okay,” she looked into the lens, “We are here tonight with one of the victims of the famous 2020 murder trial from New York. She went through over five years of repeated abuse at the hands of her kidnapper, all while he was out killing people around the city.” She turned to you, nodding her head as a show for you to react to the TV. “It’s so nice to have you here, Miss (Y/N).” 

You cleared your throat, shifting once more, “Thank you, it’s a pleasure to be here.” 

“How are you doing?” 

You bit back a scoff, what a stupid thing to ask. After that introduction, what was she expecting you to say, ‘oh I’m fucking fantastic, I’ve been running since the day he was sent to prison and going through intense psycho-therapy to rid myself of Stockholm syndrome.’. 

“I’m great,” you faked a smile, “Always nice to visit New York again.” 

“I’m sure,” she smiled once more, all you could think about were the wrinkles on her face, the crows feet on the corner of her eyes. She must get botox for working at a news station, there’s no way her skin is on with just natural confidence. 

“When was the last time you visited?” 

You had to stop yourself from blurting out an answer, knowing that this would be on national television. Which you knew federal prisons watched, you wouldn’t want to give away any of your whereabouts since the incident. “Uh-it’s been a few years, I haven’t had much reason to be back. My life has shifted to another part of the world.” 

“That’s fantastic! So you’ve been doing well for yourself the past six years?” 

“Yeah,” you gave a genuine smile, “It’s been tough, no off days really. Trying to gain some normalcy from it all, but I’ve done well. I live relatively fearless, of everything.” 

“We have you here because of a break in your case, as I’m sure you know.” 

You gave a grim nod. 

It’s all anyone wanted to talk about since the story flashed on the news last week. Leaving your once quiet home filled with reporters. You weren’t even home when it happened, out getting groceries, gripping your sons’ hands firmly as you walked the aisles. Letting him pick out some snacks for his lunchbox, like any mother would, when your phone blew up. 

Dozens of messages, calls, articles, you name it. 

All with his face plastered on it. 

Convicted murderer and kidnapper, Kylo Ren, has requested the death penalty. After being found attempting to escape federal prison for the 6th time in the past five years. The convict claims that he ‘would rather die than live another day rotting in his cell’. Dropping all the appeals cases that his lawyers have been pushing since his initial sentencing. 

The former New York state governor was on trial for murderering and disemboweling 9 separate victims and kidnapping an 18-year-old girl. He kept her in his basement as his sex slave for close to 3 years before he married her, the young girl escaping into the streets when she was just 22 years old. Covered from head to toe in gashes, blood, and bruises. Claiming that her husband had beaten her within an inch of her life. 

The subsequent trial lasted three months after his arrest. Leading to him being convicted of first-degree murder, rape, and domestic assault. He was sentenced to life in prison, his then-wife was placed under medical care for an undetermined time. 

Mr. Ren has tried to get his charges appealed since the initial sentencing, claiming that his wife was mentally insane and an unfit witness. Along with other claims that include bribing members of the jury to change their verdicts. The whereabouts of Mr. Ren’s ex-wife is unknown, but he claims that he has kept tabs on her even from ‘the inside’. 

“Your kidnapper is being put on death row, which isn’t allowed in the state of New York. Which means he is being transferred over state lines to another prison. However, it hasn’t been revealed where he is being brought because of people interfering with the swap. How do you feel about that?” 

You chewed your cheek, thinking for a moment. There was no way he did this willingly, Ren was never someone to take the easy way out. The last time you heard from him was three years ago, on your son’s birthday. 

Receiving a call from the prison, the only one you had gotten since the sentencing. 

You remember picking up the phone, throat going dry as you whispered that you accepted the charges. Waiting for the operator to connect you to him, after three long years without his voice. 

“Hello, love.” 

“What,” you whispered, stepping away from the living room of screaming toddlers. Your boyfriend gave you a weird look when your face went white as a ghost. “What do you want, Ren?” 

“How are you? Doing well I hope?” 

You huffed, moving into your kitchen and ripping a bottle of wine out of the fridge. Taking a drink as you snarled, “Just tell me what shitty thing you have to say so I can go back to my family.” 

“Oh, yes. Your family.” he sighed, “And what a sweet family it is… little Luke is how old now? I would think he would be about… three.” 

“How do you know about my son?” 

“Hm.” 

“I don’t think he’s just yours.” 

“You shut your mouth, Luke is not your son. I’m going to hang up if you don’t get to the point.” 

“He’s growing up so well. Hairs getting longer, but I know you like to keep it short. But he complained about his ears last time-so big.” 

You took a deep breath, peaking into the living room. Just in time to see your baby boy, smiling and laughing with his friends. Sitting in your boyfriends’ lap, tearing into presents. His big eyes shone with tears of joy when he ripped through a gift that was his favorite color, red. A squeal so loud it could’ve shattered a window, pulling out a giant plush toy. It was like a penguin-mixed with a little dog, no nose, and some sharp fangs. From one of his favorite TV shows, along with a card and some other little toys. 

“Tell me, love,” he chuckled, “Does he like his present? He sounds over the moon about it through the speaker. What I wouldn’t give to be there to run my fingers through his dark hair, look him in the eyes and tell him how much his father loves him.” 

You made Luke sleep in bed with you that night, holding his small body flush with yours. Running your fingers through his curls as he snored into your chest, small tracks of drool seeping into your nightshirt. Trembling as you stared at the shadows, dancing across the bedroom from the window. Full moon shining, you could’ve sworn the floor was creaking downstairs, the sound of footsteps climbing towards your room rang in your ears. 

You didn’t sleep that night, staring into your son’s face as he woke. Blinking awake to smile as you, his grin reaching across his face. All the way to his ears, large ears, covered by his almost black waves. His long lashes fluttering as he greeted you, “Hi mama.” 

His eyes. 

Fuck. 

One of them your eye color, shining back at you. But the other, it was his. 

Deep auburn, shining in the sunlight. Daring you to challenge him, defy him, prove him wrong, anything that would allow him to unleash whatever hell lived under his skin. Flowed through his blood, tainting every corner of your psyche. His child, the one you hid from the world. Moving as far away as you could, claiming it was your boyfriends’ child. 

But he knew. 

And Luke was starting to notice. 

“I feel,” you looked at your hands, forcing them into fists to stop them from shaking, “Just fine, he’s not in my life anymore. Just a small chapter in the book of my story, I hope that he finds peace. Wherever he goes.” 

“Peace? For a man that almost killed you multiple times?” 

You nodded, “Yeah, I do. I can’t change who he is, or what he’s done. I can just try as hard as I can to move on. And if being on death row will help him find what he’s looking for then I wish him the best of luck.” 

She gave you a weird look, shifting in her seat, “Do you think it says anything about his guilt?” 

“Guilt?” 

“Yes, for the past six years he has never acknowledged that he was guilty. Claiming that the jury and witnesses were bought and that you were mentally unstable-making up half the accusations against him. Do you think that him asking for the death penalty is a way of admitting that he was guilty?” 

“Hell no,” you blurted out, eyes going wide at the camera, “Oh-can I swear? I’m so sorry.” 

She laughed you off, “You’re fine, we can blur it out. But you sound so confident? Do you think he believes that he’s done nothing wrong?” 

Now it was your turn to laugh, “Not to repeat myself but, hell no. That man knows, he’s very conscious of his decisions. Everything has a purpose, everything is done for a reason, Ren doesn’t waste his energy on doing something for no benefit.” 

“What would be the benefit of being put on death row?” 

You sighed, thinking about Ren, trying to get into his mindset to see how he could angle the sentencing changing. Letting out a sharp laugh as you rubbed your eyes, “Well-you said it earlier.” 

She looked at you confused. 

“New York doesn’t have the death penalty.” 

New York doesn’t have the death penalty. 

New York doesn’t have the death penalty. 

New York doesn’t have the death penalty. 

“Oh my god,” you whispered, looking around the room frantically. “Oh my god-oh my god-oh my GOD-New York doesn’t have the death penalty!” you screamed, shooting out of the chair. Grasping the reporter by her shoulders and shaking her violently, “He knew! He knew I was coming here! He’s gonna take him!” 

“Miss (Y/N),” the reporters and security officers yelled. Trying to calm you down, but no, she had said it. 

New York doesn’t have the death penalty. 

You ran from the TV station, hailing a cab on the packed streets. Frantically calling your boyfriend over and over, he was at home. Back in Nevada… where the death penalty is legal, with Luke. He wouldn’t pick up, the dial tone ringing three times before his voice sang through the speaker. 

You wailed in the back of the cab, calling everyone you knew back at home. Asking if they could go get Luke from school, if they had seen him that day. Anything to try prove false the sick feeling in your stomach you knew was true. 

Running through airport security as fast as you could, taking the first flight back home. You prayed on the way that your boyfriend had Luke, safe and sound, back at home. Hopefully, curled in his red blanket, snuggling the stuffed animal he got that faithful birthday. 

Even though no one knew where it came from. 

Luke wouldn’t let you get rid of it. 

Claiming his daddy gave it to him. 

You just let him have it, he was three there was no way he would let you take his toy away once he had held it to his chest. Kissing it with his full lips, dragging it around the house every fucking day. It was his best friend, from the moment he saw it. 

You cried on the plane, realizing too late that the gift was from him. 

His real father. 

Watching after his miracle child. 

When you touched down in Las Vegas, your phone blew up. Your stomach flipping as you read through the messages from your boyfriend, explaining that he let your friend pick Luke up from school. The same friend claimed that your boyfriend had picked him up, Luke’s teacher calling to let you know someone in a black Porsche picked him up. 

Whisking away his child from under your nose. 

You choked on your tears as you read the message from his teacher, telling you how happy Luke was when he left. How he ran into your new boyfriend's arms, like he had known him for his entire life. She told you that he had introduced himself, Ben was just the most amazing father figure she had ever met. Stowing away Luke, surrounded by toys and chocolate when she waved them off. 

After you gathered your luggage you walked towards the cabs out front. Stopping cold in your tracks when you saw a chauffeur holding a sign that said your old name. 

Mrs. Ren. 

You climbed in, body feeling numb. 

Your phone dinged, a picture being sent to you from an unknown number. 

A picture of Luke, held tightly against his real father’s chest. Drifting off to sleep in his strong arms that once choked you to death. 

See you at home love, we miss you. 

-----

I wanted baby luke to say something like ‘my daddy visits me at night’ but it was too on the nose. 

TAGLIST: @finn-ray-nal-beads @millenialcatlady @ohdamnadamm  @daydreamsofren @candycanes19 @caelum-phyriina-vermillon @millenialcatlady @safarigirlsp  @caillea @roanniom @insufferablelust @mrs-zimmerman​ 

[jamielea81]

Conversations

Chapter 9

Description: You accompany your friends on a day trip to Animal Kingdom Theme Park where you meet Scott Evans by chance. This one afternoon leads to a year long friendship with both Chris and Scott over text messages and phone calls.

Pairing: Chris Evans x Reader

Warning: Slightly NSFW - nothing graphic, but 18+ only please. Also cursing per the usu and fluff! 

Word Count: 5,000

A/N: I know nothing about the lives of the Evans family and mean no harm. This is purely fiction and for fun. Reblogs and comments are much appreciated! The tag list is now closed. Each chapter tends to get reblogged from me a few times, so if you’re following me, you can’t miss it.

*Italics are internal thoughts

Catch up with chapter 8

****

With worn leather carry-on bag in hand, you made your way to the pickup area of the airport. Since you were only staying for two nights, you found no need to check a bag. Granted your carry-on was stuffed to capacity. You needed options. It’s summer in New York and it’s hot. You packed a pair of shorts, a t-shirt, a dress, two blouses, two shoe options besides the ones you were wearing, two new bra and panty sets because, well, we all know why, and a new pajama shorts and t-shirt set. You were currently dressed in jeans, a green V-neck tee, and flats. Depending on what Chris’ plans were, you’d change.

You spotted the driver easy enough. He was lined up with a dozen others, but he held up a white page of printer paper with your last name in big black letters going across it.

“Y/N?” he asked.

“That’s me,” you said with a smile.

“I’m John and will be your driver today. Allow me to take your bag.” John’s hand extended and you quickly passed the bag to him.

Following behind him to a parking garage, the two of you made your way to waiting black Town Car. He opened the backseat door for you to get in and promptly shut it before placing your bag in the trunk.

“Your hotel is quite nice. It over looks the park,” John said, looking at you in the rear view mirror as he drove.

You smiled and nodded in return. You had been to New York once, but that was years ago and your hotel was situated nowhere near Central Park.

Pulling up to the Park Lane Hotel, John quickly got out of the vehicle while one of the doormen opened your door.

“Checking in?” the man asked.

“Actually, she’s meeting another party who has already checked in,” John replied. “Would you like to take your own bag or do you require assistance?”

Reaching for your bag, you took it from John’s hands. “I think I can handle it. But thank you.”

“Here is your room key as well as the room number. I hope you enjoy your trip,” John said, handing you a crisp white envelope.

“Thank you, John,” you said.

**

Despite being on the forty sixth floor, the elevator ride was quite quick. Finding room 4630 was another story. The floor was a maze of rooms. Even with various signs posted to the walls with room numbers listed pointing in all directions, you still struggled to find the correct hall. You were sweating and regretting not accepting the assistance that was offered for your measly carry-on bag.

Reaching the correct room, you took a breath and knocked. After a reasonable amount of time, you knocked again. Yes, you had a room key, but Chris had already checked in and you didn’t want to barge in. He could have someone in the room with him or he could be coming out of the shower. Well that second scenario wouldn’t be so bad to walk in on.

Mind out of the gutter, Y/N.

With no answer, you leaned your ear against the door but didn’t hear a peep.

“This is silly,” you said out loud.

Grabbing the room key from the envelope, you touched it to the door, making the reader flash green. Opening the door, you could see the hall light was on, but the rest of the room was dark.

“Chris?” you called out.

With no reply, you proceeded into the room, flicking the switch just past the hallway that opened into a sitting type room. With lights on, you could now see the room was more of a two-room suite. The room you walked into had a cream colored couch and two upholstered light blue chairs as well as a dark stained dining table with four chairs. The floor to ceiling curtains were closed, so even with the light on, the room was very dim. Dropping your bag to the floor, you walked to the window, pulling one panel of the curtain across and then proceeding to pull the second. Light filtered into the room, but your eyes were locked to the view. Central Park laid before you in all its lush green glory. From the forty sixth floor, you could see the whole park. Not wanting to leave your view, you walked over to the dinning table to grab a chair to drag closer to the window.  It’s there that you saw another white envelope with your name across the front. Flipping it over, you pulled the tucked in flap out, and pulled out the small sheet of hotel stationary.

Hi Sweetheart,

I have a couple of meetings this morning, but should be back around 2. If you’re hungry, order whatever you like from room service. When I get back, let’s take a walk through the park and grab dinner.

I’m sorry I’m not there to greet you, but I’m so happy you are here.

See you soon.

Chris

Your tummy fluttered at his words. It was becoming a more common sensation for you.

It was almost noon and lunch sounded like a solid plan. Grabbing the room service booklet from the side table next to the couch, you sat down and relaxed into probably one of the nicest pieces of furniture you have ever had the pleasure of sitting in. Usually hotel furniture was built to last which often meant it was hard. This couch was plush. You made a mental note not to eat while sitting on it.

**

With your stomach full from the sandwich and side of kettle chips you ordered, you decided to check out the rest of the suite. The doors to the bedroom were opened to reveal a pristine four poster bed. You had to bite back that urge to jump on to it. It was just to pretty to mess up. An over sized dresser tucked against the wall in front of the bed had a large flat screen television mounted to the wall above it. The bathroom and a large walk-in closet were within the bedroom. Taking a quick look in the closet, you see that Chris has neatly hung his things and stored his bag. Deciding that after taking a look in the bathroom, you’d do the same, especially since everything was stuffed into your bag. The bathroom is rather large with a glass shower and large soaking tub. Four glass jars full of various bath salts and scents line the vanity. You’re really tempted to take a bath, but Chris would be coming back soon.

You head back into the living room and let yourself fall onto the couch, grabbing the remote from the coffee table before you lay back. Despite it being the end of June, Home Alone 2 is on. Since it takes place in New York, you keep it on and distract yourself until you get to see Chris again.

**

“Sweetheart.” There’s a gentle hand sweeping across your forehead. “Sweetheart, it’s time to wake up.”

Your eyes flutter open to a glorious sunset. Well, it’s not the sunset exactly, it’s Chris Evans which is close enough. He’s bathed in orange and pink hues from the floor to ceiling window displaying the last of the day’s sun.

“There she is,” he coos, hand moving down to your cheek.

“Hi,” you whisper. “What time is it?”

“It’s late. Well, later than I wanted to get back. It’s almost eight thirty.” He’s kneeling on the carpet in front of you, the back of one of his hands resting on your cheek.

Your eyes open wide. “Eight thirty? I didn’t think I was that tired. I can’t believe I slept for so long.”

Chris chuckles and shakes his head slightly. “Why are you so tired beautiful?”

You feel the heat instantly rise to your cheeks and you wonder if he can feel it. You bite your bottom lip, turning the corners of your mouth up.

“Well, I had trouble sleeping last night. And maybe, just maybe, it’s because a tiny part of me was nervous to see you.”

“Is that so?” He’s grinning now, eyes crinkling and you’re just wishing he would lean in the twelve inches that separates your faces.

“M’fraid so. Apparently, you have that effect on me,” you said softly.

Then it happens. His nose brushes against yours as his warm breath cascades down to your lips. His bottom lip catches your top and he holds it there. Soft and still and you have the urge to pull him closer. Slowly his lips begin to move in tandem with yours, as you struggle to remember to breathe. Your tongue peeks out a slightly and you feel him smile against your mouth before reciprocating the action. Both of his hands have made their way to your face, holding you still while your mouths do the work. Fingers work their way up from his biceps, lightly scratching the back of his neck, and then finely running through his soft locks. Chris lets out a small moan and you mentally lock that bit of information away. He pulls back slightly kissing you once, and then twice before rubbing his nose against yours. You’re breathing softly, but it’s heavy.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he said, voice dry and deep.

“Me too,” you reply, sitting up slightly to peck his lips.

He smiles a big closed mouth dopey grin that you can’t help returning.

**

It’s completely dark before the two of you venture out of your suite. Chris has changed from the button down and slacks to jeans and a gray graphic tee from some tech brand you haven’t heard of before.

Dinner is enjoyed in the Park Room Restaurant housed within the comfort of the hotel. Neither of you wanting to travel far, especially you, still in that “I just woke up from a nap and had the breath kissed out of me” mood. Since it’s late, the restaurant is quiet. The staff seats you in the back, away from most prying eyes.

“It’s not so bad here, in New York, I mean. There’s lots of actors and musicians that live here, so people get pretty used to seeing ‘em. You still get paps, but it’s not as bad as L.A.”

You nod your head in understanding. “A little more freeing I bet.”

Chris nods this time. “In Mass, it’s even easier. Hardly ever get filmed there. It’s just…easy there. I’d like to spend more time there. My house is having some remodeling done, but I’d like to be there close to full time before next year.”

The server stops by, delivering your entrees to the table. Everything is pretty on the plate. Three different colored sauces create a beautiful summer palette to the eyes. If the restaurant wasn’t so dim lighted, you’d take a picture with your phone. Chris needed to learn how cheesy you are.

“How does that work, work wise? If you’re in Boston, are you having to fly off somewhere each week?”

Chris covers his mouth with his hand as he’s still chewing. You let out an abrupt laugh. “Sometimes, most stuff is handled by my manager or agent otherwise it’s over the phone.” He lowers his hand and continues. “So, unless I’m working, I’m just home.”

“Well, I’m glad. You need time to just chill. Scott says you tend to stress yourself out a little.” Chris smiles but shakes his head. “What?! I’m sure he tells you stuff about me.”

“Maybe,” he said coyly.

“Maybe.” You shake your head. “You Boston boys.”

“Boston boys. Well, I’m pretty sure you like Boston boys.”

He’s so cocky but he pulls it off because of that damn charming smile.

Chris takes your hand and brings it to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on it.

“Yeah, I do,” you mumble out.

**

The bed in the room is every bit of heaven you imagined it would be. Layer upon layer of cotton goodness line the already soft mattress. The two of you are laying side by side in your pajamas watching old episodes of The Office on cable. Chris is dressed in a plain white t-shirt with flannel black and red pajama pants that you’re pretty sure he’s wearing for your benefit. Your face is sans makeup which had you feeling a bit uncomfortable at first until Chris told you that you looked beautiful. He has a way of always making you feel that way.

“I think you should direct the Michael Scarn movie,” you said bluntly, turning to face him.

Chris lets out loud chuckle.

“Really?” he says slowly. “Is that right? You think it’s ready for the big screen?” he asked between laughs.

“Well, I feel like it’s a story that can touch all audiences. However, it’s real think piece that relates to today’s youths,” you replied.

“Anyone ever tell you that you should go into politics? Your mouth is very influential.”

“My mouth, huh?” you asked with a smirk.

You leaned in, capturing his lips in a slow kiss. Chris’ arm wrapped around you, pulling you to him so that your chest was pressed against his. While the kiss was slow, your heart rate certainly was not. He was letting you take charge by allowing you to set the speed. You licked into his mouth earning a groan from him that only urged you on. The kiss broke while you moved to straddle him. Leaning forward you kissed his lips, his chin, then his neck. Chris took ahold of your face, bringing your lips back to his. His other hand went to the back of your head as he held you in place, taking control once again. He slowed down the pace, kissing you soft and slow while still keeping that firm grasp on the back of your head. Chris sucked your bottom lip into his mouth, eliciting a moan from you. You ground down on him, causing him to release your lip. He kissed you chastely before pushing his forehead against yours. The two of you pressed together breathing heavy.

“I think we should maybe slow it down,” Chris said softly.

You nodded your head as you eased yourself off of him. Really, you wanted to do anything but slow it down. For once you knew exactly what you wanted, but just by him saying he wanted to slow down, you went right back to doubting everything once again. Now you were completely turned on with no outlet.

Once again you were side by side, both sets of eyes on the TV watching Jim and Dwight bicker.

“So, Threat Level Midnight, huh?” he asked.

You gasped out a laugh, swatting his chest with the back of your hand. “Dork.”

“Back to that are we?” he asked.

“Watch the show,” you said, bumping your elbow against his arm.

**

Like a cliché scene from a movie, you woke to the sun filtering through a part of the curtains that didn’t quite close and something, or rather someone poking your backside. Who were you to complain? Chris held you close, his soft breath warming your neck. You started to gently play with his fingers that hugged your middle. It was one of the things you never paid much attention to. You felt like you knew his voice inside and out. His eyes and smile were set to memory from all of your Facetime sessions over the last month or so. But his hands were a work of art in their own right.

“What are you doin’? he mumbled into your hair.

It was a good thing he wasn’t facing you because there was no doubt, he would see the embarrassment in your face.

“I’m just trying to hold your hand?” you said with a shrug.

“Okay Sassy.” He kissed your shoulder. “C’mere.”

You turn to face him and he immediately pulls you close, kissing your forehead and then the top of your head.

“I have a meeting at eleven, but I won’t be long. Nothing like yesterday. We’ll actually make it to the park today,” he laughs out.

“Sounds good to me,” you said as you buried your face into his chest.

**

Central Park was larger than you remembered it. The two of you had been walking for over an hour, just taking in greenery. Chris had a ballcap on his head and shades on his face. To your surprise, no one had approached him. Sure, there could be photographers following you both, but you didn’t see them and Chris seemed relaxed. Not long after you reached the park, he reached for your hand and hadn’t let go.

“What do you want to do tonight?” Chris asked.

You pulled him to a bench and sat down, him raising his eyebrows at you before taking a seat. He took your hand again, resting it on his knee.

“Honestly, I’m up for anything. I’m just happy we were able to meet up.”

Chris released your hand, putting his arm over your shoulder, pulling you closer. He hummed and then kissed your temple.

“Is it too soon to ask when I can see you again?” he asked.

You turned your head to face him. He had a smile on his face and you wished in that moment you could see his eyes.

“Never,” you whispered.

Chris scoffed and it made you pull back, wondering what was wrong.

“You never want to see me?” he said with mock hurt.

“God, you’re a brat.” You shook your head and bumped him with your shoulder. “You know that’s not what I meant! I said it’s never too soon to ask to see me again.”

He wrapped his arm around your shoulder again and pulled you to him so that you were almost embracing in a hug.

“Oh! Is that what you meant?” A teasing tone in his voice.

“You know damn well,” you responded back, pouting your lips even though he couldn’t see you.

Chris’ face was close to yours and for a moment you thought he was going to lean in to kiss you, but he pulled back a bit and kissed your temple again instead.

**

Dinner was spent at Sarabeth’s Central Park South. Neither of you had eaten there before but it was conveniently located near the hotel and had great reviews. You changed into the green shift dress you packed, pairing it with a heeled leather sandal. Chris dressed in jeans and light blue button-down shirt. The color made his eyes pop, but really what didn’t?

“So, what’s the next project you have coming up?” you asked.

Chris had finished filming the new Apple TV series but was mum on the plot. It wasn’t set to air for several months and it hadn’t been promoted yet.

“Not a lot, least not for a while.”

You beamed at his response. If Chris’ schedule wasn’t packed, perhaps he’d have time for you.

“Maybe a trip to Orlando in your future?”

You hoped there wasn’t any desperation in your voice.

“Perhaps. There’s a woman I know that lives there. And I kind of like her,” he said, voice low to keep the conversation between you two.

“Kind of? Orrrrr?” you asked.

Reel it back, Y/N.

Chris chewed on his lip and kept you waiting for a few seconds longer than you would have liked.

“I really like you sweetheart. You’re important to me and I want to make the most of our time together. This little getaway isn’t the last by a long shot.”

You gulped and you know he saw it, but that didn’t matter. You reached across the table and took his hand in yours, rubbing his knuckles with your thumb.

“You’re important to me too and I wish we hadn’t wasted so much time.”

“Can’t think about it that way. This happened when it was meant to happen and I’m enjoying getting to know you in this new way,” he replied.

You smiled at his words and nodded your head in agreement.

**

You plopped down in the bed, letting out a groan.

Chris chuckled from across the room at your display.

“Not even going to change into your PJs?”

“Would you laugh if I said my feet hurt and I really don’t want to get up again?” you asked.

Chris walked to the side of the bed, sticking his hand out.

“Give me your foot. I’ll take your shoes off.”

Heat instantly flooded your face and neck, but you obliged offering him one foot and then the other. Once both were off, you lowered your legs back to the bed and looked up to see a Chris with an easy-going smile. He moved to sit next to your laying body, you scooting over to give him room. Chris turned on his side facing you, using his elbow to support his head.

“Hi,” you said softly.

“Hi beautiful,” he replied just as soft.

His warm hand met your bare knee, playing with the hem of your dress lightly with his fingers. Each second he grew more adventurous as he eased his hand further past the hem. Your hand reached out to his neck as your fingers swept through the short hairs at the nape of his neck. It was your silent gesture that this soft moment between the two of you was fine.

He leaned forward, capturing your lips with his as his hand slipped up your thigh till it reached the lace of your panties. Goosebumps erupted down your body and you had no doubt he could feel them on your thigh. Your other hand instinctively went to his chest. Slowly you lowered it down to his waist until you reached his belt. You pulled on it, never parting from the kiss until you felt it loosen.

Chris pulled back and your stomach dropped, worried he going to suggest that the two slow down.

“I want to make you feel good,” he whispered against your lips. The hand disappeared from under your dress to grab your own. He brought it to his lips before placing it on your stomach. “Is that alright?”

Your lips quirked up into a small smile. “Yes, I’d like that.”

Chris’ hand found your bare skin again, slowly sliding up your thigh until he reached your panties. His lips were back on yours as he pulled them to the side and his fingers began to caress you.

**

Waking up to a boxer clad Chris in your bed was not a bad way to wake up. Your only regret was that you were leaving today. Grabbing your phone off the night stand, you checked the time. It was nine in the morning and you didn’t have to leave for the airport until around one.

“Why are you awake?” came Chris’ groggy voice.

“I have to leave today,” you pouted, tossing your phone to the side. You slid closer to him, curling up against his side, fingers drawing circles on his hairy chest.

“I know, baby, but we still have some time. Let’s just stay in bed until it’s time to head to the airport,” he offered.

Chris wasn’t flying home, but he insisted on going with you to the airport. He’d be in New York for one more night. Too bad you had to be in the office tomorrow. Really, you could have called in sick or taken another day off, but you really wanted to save that time for future trips, especially now that you felt there would be future trips.

“Sounds good to me,” you hummed into his shoulder.

Chris leaned in to kiss the top of your head before lowering back to the pillow and pulling you closer. After a few minutes, his breathing evened out and you knew he was asleep. You blindly reached for your phone that you haphazardly threw on the mattress. After a few attempts you were able to locate it, quickly setting an alarm for an hour later before setting it next to you and closing your eyes.

This is definitely something I could get used to.

**

Chris had ordered a later breakfast via room service after your alarm woke the two of you up. He slipped on his jeans from last night as well as a t-shirt much to your disappointment. Of course, you didn’t expect him to answer the door in just his underwear, but you already missed the view.

Chris wheeled the cart into the bedroom, stopping in front of the bed.

“Your breakfast madame,” he said, bowing with one arm held out.

You chuckled at his display as you crawled on your knees to the end of the bed. You were dressed in just a t-shirt and the panties he became quite familiar with last night.

“I think you should take your clothes off,” you said.

“Take my clothes off?” he chuckled out. “I thought you wanted food.”

“I do, but I think you’ll be a lot more comfortable in just your boxers. After all, I’m only in my underwear. It’s only fair, Chris,” you reasoned.

He shook his head, but followed your request and started to strip, much to your delight.

**

After breakfast in bed and a few shared kisses, you contemplated showering for the day. Showering meant getting out of bed and out of each other’s arms as well as getting dressed. You were content just to stay where you were, and with Chris’ holding you tight, you figured he was too.

Tilting your head up, you rubbed your nose against his, causing Chris to hum.

“This is nice,” you said against his lips.

“It is.”

Bringing your lips to his, you kissed him soft and slowly. Your lips were barely touching, but it felt so much more intimate. Chris’ hand drafted down to your butt, smoothing his hand over it before giving it a squeeze. You chuckled into his neck before bringing your face back up to his. The two of you looked softly into each other’s eyes. You brought your hand up to his chin, letting your fingers drag through his beard.

“I wanna be with you,” you said.

“Yeah?” he asked, understanding the meaning behind your words.

“Yeah. I want you.”

Where this boldness was coming from, you weren’t sure. But in that moment, you wanted him completely.

Chris kissed you hard, pushing you on your back. He lifted the hem of your t-shirt over your breasts and took a hard nipple into his mouth before letting it go. You sat up briefly so that he could pull it off of your head. His lips met yours as you ran your hands down his bare back. He was flailing around a bit and took you a moment to realize he was trying to take off his boxers without breaking your kiss.

You giggled into his mouth and pushed him off you slightly. Chris gave you a worried look that ended as soon as your hands were pulling his boxers the rest of the way down.

“Condoms?” you asked.

You’d been on birth control off and on over the years but had gone back on it when you and Ethan were together. Since you and Chris were barely a thing, you wanted to be safe until you talked about it. To your relief Chris nodded and got off the bed, displaying his bare ass to you.

“I hate to see you go, but I love to watch you leave,” you joked.

Chris kept his backside to you, but looked over his shoulder and gave you a wink. He disappeared into the closet for a minute, returning with a foil packet in his hand. He gave you a big grin and wiggled his eyebrows.

“What?” you asked coyly, smile still on your face.

Before you could ask again, he jumped on the bed, landing on his knees and attacking you with fast moving fingers and lips over your face and neck, leaving you in a fit of giggles.

**

In the back of John’s Town Car, you were settled close to Chris.

“I have like three text messages from Scott and one missed call,” you said, scrolling through your phone.

“Yeah, I have a few too,” Chris said looking at his phone.

Scott: What are you doin’?

Scott: Did you buy me a souvenir?

Scott: Why aren’t you answering your phone???

Oh Scott.

“I’ll just call him,” you said.

“No, let’s Facetime him,” Chris said, clicking on the contact for Scott on his phone.

Scott’s face appeared a few seconds later.

“You guys are alive! Geez, that only took like three hours.”

“Yeah. Yeah,” Chris replied.

“We’re going to the airport,” you said sadly, bottom lip sticking out. Chris kissed your cheek and you immediately dropped the pout.

“Fly to Boston!” Scott shouted.

You shook your head. “Can’t. Work awaits.”

“Fineeee. It’s a standing invitation, so whenever,” he replied.

“That goes for me too,” Chris said, kissing your lips.

“You guys are gross,” Scott said.

“And I don’t even care,” you replied.

“What were you guys doing anyway? Since neither of you answered your phones?” Scott asked, eyebrows raised.

You looked at Chris, trying to keep your face as neutral as possible.

“We were busy. Mind ya business,” Chris replied.

You let out a big laugh and looked away from the camera.

“Busy?” Scott asked. “Interesting. You guys are gross.”

It was Chris’ turn to laugh.

**

John parked in short term parking so that you and Chris could say goodbye with out a crowd of people and honking cars. He popped the trunk when Chris told him he would help you with your bag.

The two of you stood at the trunk, neither speaking. You pulled him into a hug when you couldn’t find the words to say. Chris kissed your neck and you let out a sigh.

“I didn’t think it would be this hard,” you mumbled into his neck.

Chris pulled away and kissed your lips.

“We’ll make it work. I promise you. I’m not giving you up. I’m not giving us up,” he said.

You nodded and kissed him.

“We will. I just wish I could see you more often. I feel lucky enough that I just saw you last month.”

Chris pulled you into his arms, kissing your temple. “We’ll come up with a plan. A schedule.”

“Okay,” you said softly. “We’ll make it work.”

A nearly three hour plane ride would be a good time to start to come up with that plan.

Chapter 10

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[toasty-coconut]

Me, My Wife, and Alcor

Summary: Ah, yes. Me, my wife, and her £500, four-foot tall Alcor plush. Rated: G Words: 2460 Characters: Akko Kagari, Diana Cavendish Note: I saw this picture that @blee-bleep drew and could not help myself. I had to write something.

Read on AO3.

Purchasing birthday gifts for Akko Kagari was a relatively simple task. She had always been vocal about what she wanted—the 15th anniversary Shiny Chariot World Tour bluray set, a particular polishing kit for her broom, or a trip to the new amusement park outside of Blytonbury. This year it happened to be a certain £500, four-foot tall plush of Shiny Chariot’s crow familiar, Alcor.

Diana’s original response to the request had been a firm, ‘no, absolutely not’. However, when Akko got that look in her eyes and that pout on her face akin to that of a sad dog, Diana would find herself going weak in the knees.

To say the least, her wife ended up having a very happy birthday.

While the look on Akko’s face upon seeing the large, stuffed bird sporting a big red bow was completely worth every pound spent to Diana, after a mere three days, the novelty of it was beginning to wear off. Alcor was taking up more space in their bed than Diana was, making for rather uncomfortable sleeping arrangements. He was also getting more…  physical  affection as well.

Not that Diana was jealous.

It would be silly to be jealous of a doll, of all things.

No, the most important matter at hand was the amount of  sleep she was losing because of this. Their bed, as large as it was, was not meant to accommodate two fully grown women and one oversized bird plush. Her back and shoulders were sore from contorting her body to make room for Alcor. She was freezing at night since Akko  insisted  he ‘needed blankets, too’. She was awoken at 3 AM when his ungodly amount of weight was shifted right onto her face.

By the Nine, she was exhausted.

Perhaps that was why she woke up later than usual that morning. Typically, she was awake by no later than 6 AM, but today she had awoken at the completely unreasonable time of 8:30 AM. Upon sitting up and rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she realized that, much to her surprise, there was no Akko (or Alcor) in sight. Seeing Akko out of bed any time before 10 was unusual.

Shaking the thought away, Diana pulled herself off of the mattress, slipping on a bathrobe as she made her way downstairs. The aroma of grilled meat and eggs hung heavily in the air on the first floor. Normally, Diana would have made her way directly into the dining room, but the sound of Akko’s humming voice in the kitchen caught her attention, and she turned on her heel to enter the kitchen doorway.

Under normal circumstances, she would have expected to find members of the Cavendish family staff moving about the kitchen. Instead, Akko stood in their place, her long hair still messy with bedhead, keeping a careful eye on some eggs that were cooking on the frying pan in her hand. Diana had to admit that it was an odd sight, but somewhat endearing in its own domestic sort of way.

Akko perked up as Diana entered the room, setting the pan down on the stove. “Oh! Morning, Diana!”

“Good morning, Akko,” Diana greeted, raising a brow. “You’re up early.”

Akko giggled, stepping forward and slinking her arms around Diana’s neck. “And  you’re  up late,” she noted, giving her wife a chaste peck on the lips.

“Restless night,” Diana briefly explained, causing Akko to knit her brows in concern. Deciding it would be better to change the topic than address the massive bird in their bed, her attention focused on the stove. “What are you doing in here? Where are Anna and Carter?”

“Kicked ‘em out!” Akko flashed her a toothy grin. “I thought it’d be nice to try making breakfast myself for a change!” She removed her arms from Diana’s neck, returning to her unattended frying pan. “There’s hot water on the stove if you want some tea.”

“That would be lovely.”

As Diana removed the hissing tea kettle from the stove, she wondered how much of a fight Anna must have put up to keep Akko out of her kitchen. But what she wondered about even  more  was how Akko convinced her to actually leave. Shaking the thought away, she poured the hot water into the tea cup sitting in wait for her on the counter.

That was when she noticed it.

No Alcor in sight.

She glanced around the kitchen, and sure enough, the massive stuffed animal was nowhere to be seen. Diana almost sighed in relief. She inwardly hoped that Akko had wisened up and finally decided to keep him where he belonged—in a separate room with the rest of her Shiny Chariot collectables. A smile graced her lips as she lowered a tea bag into her steaming cup.

“Here you go!” Akko announced, thrusting a plate full of food into Diana’s hands.

Diana nearly dropped her teacup from the sudden jerking motion, but managed to compose herself as she accepted the plate. “Thank you,” she managed, nodding to the dining room. “Shall we?”

Akko nodded eagerly, bounding ahead of her wife into the other room, food in hand. Diana followed close behind. It had been a while since she and Akko had breakfast alone. Usually they were accompanied by Aunt Daryl, Merrill, Marill, or the wait staff when they ate. She supposed it would be nice to spend some quality time over breakfast. Perhaps they could—

...Alcor was sitting in her spot.

Akko had happily taken her place at the dining room table and began munching away at the eggs and bacon on her plate. Diana, however, stood frozen. Her eyes were locked on the four foot tall toy sitting at the head of the table—the spot where she usually sat.

Diana cleared her throat. “...Akko?”

Akko looked up, her mouth full of bacon. “Hm?”

“Your… stuffed animal,” Diana gestured to the seat—her  seat. “Would you mind moving it so I may sit down?”

“Wha? No way!” Akko gaped, bacon falling from her mouth onto her plate. “He was there first while you were busy being a sleepyhead! You can sit next to him instead.” She turned her nose up. “And he has a  name , by the way.”

This was really happening. Diana Cavendish was really being kicked out of her spot at the head of the table, by her own wife, no less, in favor of a toy. She let out a long, restrained breath through her nostrils.

It was too early for this.

“...Fine.”

Plate and teacup in hand, Diana made her way around the table, choosing the spot across from Akko. She sat down, Alcor’s heavy presence looming over her, but she ignored it. Picking up her fork and knife, she began to cut into the eggs Akko had prepared.

But that was when she felt a different kind of heavy presence looming over her.

Diana’s eyes met Akko’s. Akko was staring heavily at her from across the table, drumming her fingers against its surface impatiently.

“...What?”

Akko scoffed. “For a Cavendish, I’m surprised you have such bad manners,” she snipped, causing Diana to reel back. “Aren’t you gonna say good morning?”

“I…” Diana’s face wrinkled in confusion, “already have.”

Akko puffed her cheeks. “Not to me!”

Diana twisted her lip, puzzled. She watched as Akko’s eyes flicked between Diana and the seat at the head of the table. She deadpanned.

“Surely you jest.”

“Surely I don’t.”

Diana put her fork down, rubbing her face with both hands. “Akko, dear,” she sighed, exasperated, “he’s not real.”

“He can hear you!” Akko hissed, covering the sides of Alcor’s head with both hands, as if to block his non-existent ears. His eyes bulged slightly at the pressure. “Don’t be mean!”

“Akko, please, it… it’s not even 9 AM yet.”

Akko narrowed her gaze, refusing to move her hands from Alcor’s head. Diana knew that look all too well. It was the look she wore when she absolutely was not about to back down from something. Diana couldn’t help but wonder if she gave Anna and Carter the same look earlier that morning.

It really  was  too early for this.

Diana closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose. “...Good morning,” she droned. When she opened an eye, she saw Akko still staring at her expectantly. Through gritted teeth, Diana added, “ Alcor .”

Satisfied, Akko’s face lit up. “Better!” she sang, retrieving her fork from off of her plate. “Now, eat up!”

The pair spent the following minutes in relative silence, only broken by the occasional sound of utensils scraping against plates. Alcor hadn’t moved an inch, simply watching Diana from his place at the head of the table with those beady eyes. It was like he was mocking her. Diana wanted nothing more than to pick up the oversized pigeon and move it away from the dining room, but the fit she was sure Akko would throw if she did kept her restrained.

“Aren’t you gonna ask Alcor how he slept last night?” Akko asked, a teasing ring to her voice.

Diana resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “I would imagine he slept better than I did,” she huffed, stabbing her fork into a piece of egg a little more aggressively than she intended. “He seemed rather comfortable in your arms.”

“Nah.  I  was the one who was comfy,” Akko laughed, waving her off. “He’s just so huggable.” She turned to her plush, pinching his cheek and cooing, “Aren’t you, Alcor?”

Alcor gave no response.

“Mm,” Diana hummed bitterly, taking a sip of her tea. “Well, I’m happy for you both, then.”

Akko raised a brow, looking between Diana and Alcor. Then, as if a lightbulb turned on in her head, she blinked. A knowing smirk spread across her face. “Oh, I get it,” she snickered, placing her elbows on the table.

“Get what?”

“You’re jealous of Alcor,” Akko declared, the smug grin on her face widening.

Diana nearly spat out her tea at the accusation. Clearing her throat, she lowered the cup. She met Akko’s gaze with an unamused one of her own. “I said no such thing.”

“You didn’t have to. It’s written all over your face,” Akko remarked, reaching over to tap Diana lightly on the nose. “You’re jealous that I’ve been spooning with Alcor at night instead of you.”

“I’m not. That would be ridiculous,” Diana dismissed, swatting Akko’s hand away with a light swish. “You are welcome to do as you please. I merely believe that it—” Akko’s eyes narrowed again and Diana hesitantly corrected herself, “—  Alcor —takes up more space in our bed than necessary.” She picked up her teacup, huffing, “It can make sleeping rather difficult.”

Akko tilted her head. “What do you mean?”

“I  mean that it is arduous to attempt sleeping when a four-foot tall crow is covering half of the bed,” Diana explained plainly, taking a sip of her tea.

Akko blinked, her brows shooting up in realization. “You’re losing sleep ‘cause of Alcor?”

“I suppose that’s one way of putting it,” Diana murmured against the rim of her cup as she took another sip.

Akko frowned, slumping in her seat. “Oh, gee, I’m sorry, Diana. I didn’t realize,” she apologized, pressing her fingers together. “You could've said something.”

And just like that Diana’s heart sank.

The pout on Akko’s face was enough to make her feel as though she had just kicked a kitten. As guilt washed over her, Diana realized just how soft she had actually become. Several years ago she would not have tolerated having a 50 pound stuffed animal taking up so much space in her sleeping quarters, but now all it took was one look from Akko to make her flip like a switch.

She let out a long breath, rubbing her temples. She was pathetic.

“It’s really nothing to fret over,” Diana assured, reaching across the table to place her hand on top of Akko’s. “If it makes you happy I’m sure I can… adjust.” Akko peeked up at her and Diana offered a small, reassuring smile. “Besides, at £500, I would certainly want you to get the most out of him.”

A smile graced Akko’s lips once more. She glanced at the ceiling, humming in thought. “All right, how about this, then?” she started, nodding to Alcor. “Alcor gets to sit in bed and cuddle with us before we go to sleep. And then when we’re ready to call it a night, I’ll put him in the armchair next to the bed.” She grinned devilishly and held up a finger. “That way, he can sit up and keep us safe at night from any intruders!”

Diana held back a small laugh at the childish suggestion, but before she could make a remark, Akko’s expression softened and she intertwined her fingers with Diana’s. “As much as I love Alcor, I don’t want you going into work unrested, you know? So, let’s try that instead.”

A light laugh escaped Diana’s lips and she tightened her grip on Akko’s hand. “...I can live with that solution.”

The smile on Akko’s face twisted into something more smug. She raised herself from her seat so she could lean across the table, her face inches away from Diana’s. “Be honest with me though, Diana,” she started, raising a brow suggestively at her, “were you at least a  little bit  jealous of me hugging Alcor all night?”

Diana could feel the heat rising from her neck all the way up to her ears. She shifted her gaze away from Akko, choosing to look at Alcor’s stupid, plump figure isntead. “Perhaps I missed your…” she coughed, tensing, “embrace…” Her gaze returned to Akko as she added, “A little bit.”

Akko snickered, teasing, “I can read you like a book.”

With that, she leaned in to press her lips softly against Diana’s. Diana rolled her eyes, but gladly returned the favor, lifting her hand from Akko’s grasp and using it to cup her cheek instead. She had completely forgotten about Alcor’s empty stare watching them from only a few feet away.

The sound of a door opening forced a crack in the moment, alarming both women who rapidly pulled away from each other. Looking to the source of the sound, Diana saw her Aunt Daryl standing in the doorway. Her normally icy eyes looked tired and hollow as they flicked between the pair and the massive white bird sitting at the head of the table.

For a moment, she said nothing—her stare locked on Alcor. Then she let out a resigned sigh, rubbing her temple. “...Anna?” she called into the hallway behind her. “Bring me the good wine. The whole bottle.”

----------------

End.

[unsent-voicemail]

[Part 2] It’s James. (Bodyguard!Bucky x Female!Reader)

It’s James.

Don’t forget it, doll, because it’ll be the only name you’ll be screaming the whole night.

tw’s: (unprotected) sex, language, alcohol, drugs, au setting

Tag list: @sp2900​ @bloodiedskirtts​

* inspired from an ask from @papi-chulo-bucky * my hand slipped and made this super long * comments/feedback are appreciated

Bucky couldn’t say he was past the point of no return. They still had their clothes on, and it wasn’t too late to shove her off and walk away. He also had ample time to take a cold shower and jack himself off before heading to bed to get a sufficient amount of rest.

The problem, however, was that he didn’t want to return. He wanted to stay under her touch as she peppered his face and neck in wanton kisses and go further, but he couldn’t bring himself to do that. James Buchanan Barnes couldn’t fathom risking his reputation as the most honorable, respectable, and professional Director of the Secret Services just because he couldn’t keep it in his pants.

“Stop.” Bucky’s tone was a weak attempt at being stern, while the supposed firm grip he had on her shoulders did nothing to stop her– anything he did at that point was blatantly ignored and wasn’t worthy of any sort of compliance. If anything, it only prompted her to press her heated core against his toned thigh, rocking her hips slowly to show how much she wanted him to get serious and stop her, or perhaps encourage her. She’d always been the boss of her own universe, so to have someone older and much more in control take that away from her had her squirming with arousal.

“Loosen up, Jake.” she giggled, sensing how tense and stiff his hands were. Placing her hands over his, she moved them to rest on her waist and dragged them upwards, letting his palms pass over the valley of her breasts and skim down to her stomach towards the direction of the spot that really needed attention. “It’ll be our secret. I promise.” she muttered in Bucky’s ear before taking his earlobe into her mouth, lightly sucking and biting.

It’s wrong!, his inner voice practically hollered at him, but his thought process was made hazy with arousal. He couldn’t deny how her expertly done ministrations sent him straight to Cloud 9 and beyond, but he also couldn’t deny the repercussions that were bound to come after their little moment– it was like being caught between a rock and a hard place, between lust and his career. Such thoughts seemed to evaporate, however, when his hands naturally started to knead and caress the soft mounds, making her sigh contentedly and gasp in pleasure, while his member strained against his pants, further clouding his thought process and the line of professionalism.

As wrong as the situation was to the naked eye, the way her sounds of sordid pleasure grew more intense, her whispers of how she wanted more, and the secrecy of their little encounter– everything seemed to fall into place and it felt so right.

She, however, felt the heat in her system intensify with lust, wanting nothing more than her buzzing, slow system to cooperate with the feral desire burning in her core. Closing her eyes, she allowed her desperate need for pleasure control her as she shamelessly ground her heated core against the prominent bulge in his pants. “Oh, Jeff.” she breathed. Through her intoxicated haze, she was aware that she’d been calling out the wrong name the entire time. As much as she wanted to correct herself, she didn’t know what to say.

“It’s James.” he growled the answer she’d been looking for the whole night, jaw tensing and teeth gritting before he hastily removed his suit jacket to show the crisp, white shirt that stretched nicely over the toned planes of his body.

He had come to a firm a decision, and that was to let his lust win over and have her scream the correct name as much as long as her voice could take it. Without any warning, he rolled her onto her back to hover over her, their faces mere inches away from each other. “Don’t forget it, doll, because it’ll the only name you’ll be screaming tonight.” his words were barely above a deep-toned whisper, and it sent delicious shudders all throughout her body.

“James.” she muttered out, lightly brushing her lips against his as she savored the sound of his name and the faint taste of whiskey on his lips. “Tell me every little thing you wanna do, James.” her voice was barely above a whisper, further drawing him into her. Cocking an eyebrow at her little challenge, Bucky moved to nudge her legs apart with his knee, audaciously pressing a toned thigh against her moist core.

“Well, baby doll.” he rasped, teeth lightly grazing the shell of her ear. “I wanna see how much you want this.” he murmured before ducking down to press hot, open-mouthed kisses along her jawline and neck. Fluttering her eyes closed, she turned her head to the side and further pressed her heated body against his. Drowned in lust, she became oblivious to the way his hand wandered up and down– cupping her plush backside before moving his hand under her skirt, trailing his fingers across the crotch of her underwear as he relished the warm, damp sensation that welcomed him.

“Oh, God.” she breathed out, feeling his fingers sneak its way into her underwear and run across her slit. Engaging in something so promiscuous wasn’t exactly new to her, but she could say that it was definitely her first time being handled by a man who knew his stuff– who knew that her humble bodyguard could treat her way better than those stuck-up conglomerate heirs she wasted her time on? “I’ve been a fool.” she uttered mindlessly, a bit too garbled for Bucky to make out.

Lost in thoughts of how good he was to her, she didn’t notice that Bucky had already slipped two fingers into her dripping core up until the pads of his fingers brushed against a certain bundle of nerves that made her jolt and roll her eyes so far back that she was certain only her scleras were visible. Bucky, on the other hand, could hardly hold himself back from biting down on his lower lip as his hand picked up the speed, greedily wanting to her more of her moans and whimpers of pleasure.

Despite the garage’s dim lighting, he could still see how her face was contorted in pleasure as it glowed with a light sheen of sweat, causing stray strands of her hair to stick to her forehead in an elegant disarray. At that moment, Bucky was so absorbed in seeing more of her coming apart and falling deeper in ecstasy that he failed to notice how tight she was around his fingers, indicating that she was close to her climax. It wasn’t until something warm sprayed on his lower stomach, soaking through his shirt, that he was brought back to earth and realized that shit, he just made her squirt. 

While Bucky has had his fair share of experience in the bedroom, he wouldn’t necessarily say that it was anything adventurous or notable, which is why it came as a surprise to him that he experienced what the porn industry seemingly shoved down the masses’ throats. She, on the other hand, tried her best to catch her breath as she lay flat on the vehicle’s leather seats, her lips curled up into a blissed out smile. She knew that should word of their little rendezvous get out, they would be in deep shit, but after knowing for sure that he’s the first man who ever treated her right in an intimate sense, she decided that it was absolutely worth the trouble.

Mustering all the strength she had left in her body, she sat up and motioned for him to do the same before taking the liberty to straddle him and place her damp crotch over his prominent bulge. Wasting no time, she moved to ghost her lips along his neck as she moved down south, gingerly getting onto her knees whilst unbuttoning his shirt before pressing needy kisses onto the newly-exposed skin, eliciting pleased sighs from Bucky as his left hand absentmindedly carded through her hair. Upon feeling her unzip his pants and run her warm palm over the tent that had formed in his boxers, he couldn’t help but bite down on his lower lip as he watched her seemingly admire with wide doe eyes what he had to offer, making him wonder if she’s ever been with anyone as– humility aside– gifted as he was.

Once she took the liberty to free his rock-hard member from its rather suffocating constraints, Bucky closed his eyes and leaned his head back, already falling into pleasure just from the cool air that seemingly caressed his heated shaft. Without warning, she gingerly poked her tongue out to coyly lick at the swollen head. Gasping, the brunette man’s grip on her hair tightened, giving her the impression that he was all for what she was about to do. Looking up at him through her dark lashes, she blinked in mock innocence a few times before dipping her head down to fully take him in her mouth. 

“Oh, fuck!” Bucky’s voice cracked as he cussed out loud, pleasantly jolted by how good it felt. Through hooded eyes, he watched as she bobbed her head up and down as she hollowed her cheeks, putting so much effort into pleasuring him as if it were her job. “Princess... My sweet little princess.” he absentmindedly breathed out, which seemed to fuel something that made her moan and attempt to take him in further, not stopping until she felt the tip of his member nudge the back of her throat. Not being able to hold back, he stilled her head with both hands as he thrust into her mouth wildly, causing her to moan around him while saliva ran down the sides of her mouth. It didn’t take more than ten thrusts for him to shudder and buck deep into her mouth, shooting a rather hefty load down her throat, which she was more than happy to swallow. “Shit, princess. Don’t waste a drop.” he grunted, finding himself slightly amused at how she turned out to be a swallow kind of lady; her pristine and spoiled image made him think that the mere thought of it would be more than enough to make her gag in disgust– it turns out that she was a little more adventurous than he thought.

On any given day, she would pull away before the first drop of semen could touch any part of her body, but this time, she made an exception; there was just something about her unbelievably attractive bodyguard that made her want to impress him. Perhaps, she had grown tired of the hopeless boys trying to impress her in bed, only for them to chase after their own pleasure before leaving her high and dry. Bucky, however, just had this confident, experienced air around him that told her that he would surely take care of her and then some, leading her to step up her game for that night– she didn’t want him to know that she had wasted her time on losers who had nothing but money to offer.

She couldn’t deny that the way he praised her further added to her arousal. Sure, she was flooded with compliments every waking minute, but she knew it was superficial and solely said just for the sake of saying something. However, with the way Bucky moaned out how she was doing so well and making him feel so good, she could feel the raw sincerity and got addicted to it. Hell, she would be more than willing to be painted with his load like a cheap whore as long as she could hear more of it.

Bucky’s thick, calloused fingers lazily danced along her jaw as he panted in an attempt to catch his breath, while she leaned her cheek on his thigh, occasionally poking her tongue out the lick at his semi-hard shaft. When she least expected it, he tightened his grip on her face and made her look up at him, making her meet his lust-filled gaze. In mock confusion, she slowly batted her eyelashes at him and slightly tilted her head to the side, making the man chuckle in amusement at her rather transparent act. “Oh, princess.” he crooned, running his thumb over her swollen lower lip. Wordlessly, he pulled her up by the waist to settle on the seats, gently guiding her to lay on her back before he hovered over her.

The two were enveloped in a brief moment of silence as they caught their breaths and looked into each others’ lust-blown gazes. Licking her lips, she gingerly reached out a hand to cup his cheek as she slowly pulled him down for a heated kiss, to which he eagerly reciprocated as he felt himself grow hard once more. Upon feeling his bare arousal lightly prod at her exposed thigh, she hooked her legs around his waist to grind her dampened sex against it. Moaning into her mouth, he gripped the plush flesh wrapped around him, lightly sinking his fingers into it whilst rolling his hips into her. 

“Ah, fuck!” she cried, immediately getting addicted to the feeling of his bare erection rubbing through her clothed, heated core. She was still quite sensitive from his earlier ministrations, hence leading her to abruptly orgasm, moving her grip from his face to his shoulders as she moaned out and screwed her eyes shut tightly; she can’t recall if someone ever made her orgasm twice in a row, but if they did, it seemed like it’s been a while given how foreign the feeling was to her. “Jesus fuck!” she choked out, feeling her entire body buzz with the euphoric aftershocks of her orgasm.

Bucky couldn’t help but feel his heart swell with pride (and arrogance) at how he made her into a sweaty, moaning mess, and he wasn’t even halfway through with her. As hesitant as he was in the beginning, he was way in too deep right now. In his life, the high-profile former Secret Services Director had his fair share of drugs, alcohol, and gambling, but always found the will to keep himself from getting hooked. Getting a taste of her, however, made it almost impossible for him to control and stop himself– professionalism be damned. All he knew at that moment was that he had to get his fix of her while he still can; God knows when they’ll get to do this again, and he wouldn’t know what to do until then– for sure, his right hand would absolutely be useless after this encounter.

“James.” she rasped, pulling him out of his reverie and diverting his attention into her lustful, needy gaze peeking through her eyelids that have gotten heavy with pleasure. “I want you so badly.” she murmured before grinding her clothed crotch into his stiff member once more.

“I want you, too, princess.” Bucky gruffly replied, running his hands over her smooth expanse of her legs before briefly pulling away to flip her onto her stomach, gripping her hips and pressing himself against her ass once he got her where he wanted her. Sighing in bliss, she pressed her cheek against the semi-sticky leather seats and arched her back, wiggling her hips against him in anticipation. “You have no idea.” his voice was barely above a whisper as his hands pushed her skirt up, revealing her plush, scantily clad backside to him. “Sweet Jesus.” he muttered, biting down on his lower lip as he his warm, calloused palms ran through her ass before moving it across her waist to cup her breasts.

Upon feeling him knead the flesh and tug at her nipples through the her clothes before harshly ripping her dress to get a better feel of her luscious assets, she let out another satisfied sigh, shifting to press her core against his bare member before rubbing herself against him. Realizing that she was more than ready for what he had in store for her, he let out an amused chuckle at her desperation before tugging her underwear down to her knees, making her gasp and whimper at the cool pads of his fingers running up and down her leaking slit.

“My, my, princess.” Bucky was in awe at how soaked she was for him; never in his life did he fathom he would have a seemingly untouchable, out-of-his-league lady on her knees, desperate and begging for him– it made his cock swell and further harden in arousal, as if it wasn’t hard enough. He had planned to tease and frustrate her all night long, the same way she teased and sexually frustrated him since Day 1, but he couldn’t hold back his excitement and decided that he just had to have her right now. “You’re soaked.” he mindlessly commented, though it didn’t go unnoticed as the heat crawled up to her cheeks while her legs closed ever so slightly, embarrassed at how desperate she probably looked at the moment. “Don’t be shy, princess. You’re not as pristine as people think.” Bucky cooed teasingly, placing a rather harsh smack on her bottom and a tug on her nipple, urging her to keep her legs apart as a wanton moan escaped her lips.

“Fucking hurry up!” she hissed in impatience, proving that despite the weight of intoxication and arousal, she still was the sassy, smart-mouthed brat; perhaps, it was part and parcel of who she really was. She knew that it was always her way or no way, but in that particular moment, however, where she was under the mercy of a dominating, headstrong man, she knew that it was best to watch herself or she’d never get what she wanted.

Raising an eyebrow at her snark, Bucky placed another harsh smack across her ass before tugging her head back by her hair, as if to warn her to pipe down. “Feisty, are we?” the brunette tutted, biting back the amused smirk that was making its way to his face. Soothingly rubbing the red mark, he gripped his cock with his free hand, giving it a few tugs before aligning it with her soaked core, running the angrily read head up and down just to tease her.

Feeling him prolong the teasing and take her farther away from what she wanted the most at that moment, she felt tears prick at her eyes as she jerked her hips back in a futile attempt to relieve herself. Finally caving it, Bucky leaned down to level his lips to her ear, whispering promises of how he’ll give it to her and make her feel so good that she’ll never forget it, making her whimper as she mindlessly nodded her head in hopes that her show of desperation would make him give in. Letting out a low chuckle at how adorable she was even at her most immodest state, he inhaled sharply before inserting the tip of his member into her, relishing the feel of her warm, silky walls embracing his shaft as he took his time pushing in inch by inch, letting out a shaky breath each time he did so.

“Oh, James!” she cried out, her nails scratching on the seats in an attempt to hold onto something, anything that would keep her from floating away on her orgasmic high. Interpreting her response as positive affirmation, Bucky’s grip on her hips and hair tightened as he thrust into her, letting out a stuttered gasp as he felt her walls clench around him, while she mewled and moaned out at the pleasurable feeling of being so full– none of her lovers has ever come close to making her feel that way. “Shit, James, babe.” she muttered, feeling her head spin with arousal albeit him barely doing anything.

Not being able to hold himself back, Bucky tested the waters and thrust into her shallowly, eliciting moans and sighs from her while he threw his head back, closing his eyes in ecstasy. Soon enough, it seemed that his body acted on its own as he found himself thrusting erratically into her, giving into her pleas for him to go “deeper” and “harder”. Initially, he planned on taking full control of what was about to go down that night, but he found himself wrapped around her dainty finger as always, realizing that her pleasure was something he could get off to.

Feeling Bucky give it to her in a way that was electrifyingly foreign made it clear to her that there was no way she was going to last longer than she had hoped, especially since she was still quite sensitive from her previous orgasm. Bucky, however, had different plans, as he briefly pulled out of her and sat back down on the seats before pulling her onto his lap. Getting the message, she wasted no time in straddling him as one hand gripped his cock, guiding it back in her core, while her other hand held onto his nape for dear life. Once she was fully seated, she felt his cock lightly twitch and brush against a certain bundle of nerves that would reduce her into a sensitive, sobbing mess in no time. Bingo, was the only thought that crossed Bucky’s mind upon noting the sudden shift in her expression– he’s got her good now.

Given that she wasn’t as well-versed in the position as she is with others, she lifted her hips before sinking back down, testing the waters by riding him slowly; there was no way in hell that she was going to ruin this for them. Sensing her insecurity, Bucky reached out a hand to grip at her waist, while the other softly cupped her cheek, startling her and making her look at him. “You’re gonna ride me good, baby?” he asked huskily, to which she frantically nodded to in reply. “You’re gonna make me feel so good, huh? I know you will.” he added, making her clench around his swollen member further– she absolutely loved it when he talked dirty to her. “Shit!” he hissed as the grip he had on her waist tightened.

Oh, she was gonna be the death of him.

“Yes, James.” she whispered into his ear, before taking the dive and hastening the movement of her hips, alternating between bouncing on him and moving her hips in circles. Gritting his teeth, Bucky let out strings of curses and praise, hoping that by being talkative, he could distract himself from reaching his climax. As unfair as it was, however, he wanted her to reach hers quickly– there was just something so addicting about they way she looked when she was coming apart. With that thought in mind, his hand sneaked in between them, his fingers reaching out to circle and rub at her clit. “James– fuck! Right there!” she moaned out loud, the movement of her hips speeding up even more. As much as she wanted to make tonight all about them, her arousal sparked something greedy and selfish in her that she wanted to chase her orgasm.

Trying to prolong her orgasm was, in Bucky’s humble opinion, futile at this point– the thought of him teasing and punishing her the whole evening was a bust, as all he wanted to do at that moment was for them to be intertwined and drowned in ecstasy. “I’m not gonna last, princess.” Bucky groaned out, throwing his head back on the headrests as the touch he had on her clit grew heavier. “I’m not...” he trailed off, screwing his eyes shut and moving his hips up to meet her thrusts, eliciting cracked cries and long moans from her.

It was in Bucky’s nature to be alert and calculating, even when it came to small matters, but with the way their bodies fluidly moved as one, he lost track of time and all other senses. The only thing he could focus on at that moment was how the heat in his lower belly roared and eventually made its exit through his member, coating the walls of her warm cavern with copious amounts of his seed. It didn’t take more than five seconds for her to follow suit, reaching her climax with a high scream as she succumbed to the pleasure of him filling her up and lazily rubbing her sensitive nub. Her core clamped down on him so tightly that Bucky swore and abruptly let out another spurt of cum into her, making him let out a string of cusses at how deliciously overstimulated and sensitive he was. 

Lazily circling her hips, she made the most out of her orgasm and rode it out before flopping down in exhaustion, inhaling and exhaling deeply in an attempt to catch her breath. Bucky moved his hand from her waist and core up to skim up and down her back, blankly staring at the ceiling as he drowned in his post-orgasm high. “Jesus, princess.” he muttered lowly, disbelieving that they actually fucked and that she could fuck like no other. “You’re a damn catch.” he chuckled out, to which she hummed in response.

“Oh, James.” it was a shock that she was able to say his name correctly given that she was shrouded in paralyzing pleasure. “Goddamn, where have you been all my life?” she mumbled into his shoulder, eyelids growing heavy with exhaustion. For someone who seemed to be void of romantic and sexual relationships, her bodyguard sure knew how to guard a lady’s body.

“I’ve always been here, princess.” was Bucky’s gruff reply, punctuating his statement with wet kisses along her breasts up to her neck as he laid her across the cool, leather seats to lay with her and bask in the afterglow a bit longer. “I’m here.” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead as her eyes fluttered shut, a telling sign that he would have to carry her up to her bedroom just like he’d always do after her wild alcohol binges.

This time, however, it wouldn’t matter to him at all. That way, he could get a little more time with her, and perhaps get her even more intoxicated in something else if the opportunity presented itself.

[blackevermore]

x Wade In The Water

{ Chapter 9: Guiding Lights From Up Above }

Summary: Ester Scott was once in love. She thought the days of her shortcomings were over and that the man she found was her one and only. But all that was taken away when the demons she had became too accustomed to finally took the one thing she had left. Louisiana was her home but the devil down below was calling her name. She only has herself to blame when it came to the hands dragging her under.

Notes: It’s Hazbin Hotel, be ready for everything. Also I apologize for all my mistakes in advance!

Word Count: 4k

For every step that someone takes forward, there are those that follow. For every step someone goes the opposite way the Devil is there to remind you. 

- Ester R. Scott

 Mama sat me in the kitchen chair as she stood at the kitchen sink scrubbing away at dishes. She was upset with me, upset I’d come home and told her about my morning with the Devil. ‘Mama he’s a nice man’ I told her and she quickly hushed me with a threat in her eyes. ‘Mama he fixed my dress when I fell’ I tried again and she turned away shaking her head and asking the Lord why me and why her. ‘Mama he even walked me to school so I wouldn’t be late’ and that was the final straw as she popped me in the mouth and told me to sit. I didn’t understand, no child really understands, but I did know telling mama about the devil was the worst thing she could have possibly heard that day. So I sat in the chair and played with my thumbs waiting for her to say something. Finally, I heard the sound of the dishes hitting each other as they fell into the water and mama sighing.

“Ester,” I turned my head to look at her and she didn’t turn around. “Ester you need to get away from here.”

“What, mama?” I asked her. Confused by what she meant and how that had anything to do with what I told her before. “Mama?”

“Ester, get up right now and get out of here.” Mama finally took a step back from the sink and slowly started to turn around, but every inch she turned her appearance seemed to change.  Her lovely dark hair that was high in a bun started to fall out in strands. Her normal everyday work clothes seemed to become dirty and dry, her skin turned pale as if she hadn’t had water in ages. My throat became dry and I stumbled down from the chair and backwards to the kitchen arch. I couldn’t say anything as my body started to feel heavy as if someone was dragging me down. Fear ran from my toes to my ears and I tried to move away or at least turn my head so I didn’t see what monster mama was becoming. Finally, when I saw her face I wanted to scream but nothing came out and I was left gasping for air I didn’t know I needed. She started moving closer to me, inch by inch I dreaded not being able to get away. Her eyes were gone and nothing was left but giant holes where they should be. Her mouth was slanted and jaw halfway hanging off. Her skin had holes with every type of bug crawling out and back in. I wanted to bad to close my eyes and scream but nothing happened and I was stuck looking at her. She reached out a hand to touch me and I started hyperventilating. 

“E-Ester please wake up,” Mama said again through broken words and a dying voice. “Ester…...get…..out...of here.” She was right in front of me when I was finally able to close my eyes and turn my head.

“Baby please be safe,” I felt the touch of a warm hand on my cheek and my mama’s clear voice. 

I sighed and opened my eyes.

My vision was blurry, not because I didn’t have my glasses, it was blurry from a throbbing headache that took up a large percent of the front of my head. I tried to roll over to my side to prop myself up but I felt so drained and weak. Groaning I managed to do so anyway and pushed on my elbow to sit up. It was only then I realized I was in a bed, a very comfortable and plush bed, under the covers and seemingly tucked in. I pulled the blanket off of me to swing my legs around. But when I did I regretted it as a sharp pain ran up to my hip from my ankle. I cursed and for a moment laid back down to figure out what to do. I already knew I wasn’t back home, there was no telling if I was still in the swamps or at a medical bay, but I knew I wanted out of here. Once again, prep talking myself into finding some form of strength, I sat up with my legs dangling off the bed.

“Now child, I don’t think that be a good idea.” I snapped my attention to the sound of the voice entering the room. I couldn’t see who it was and it made me anxious to get out even more. It was a woman’s voice that sounded a bit older with a hint of concern. When I saw a blur of something or someone getting closer I squinted and tried to make out what was in front of me. She was short and a bit stubby with abnormally pale skin. Her hair was ghostly blonde and I could have sworn she was wearing a fancy dress. She was like a ghost as she got closer and I wasn’t too sure if it was my brain fog or if she was real. What really caught my attention was her large eyes, they were black with red irises. She reminded me of the abnormal appearance of the devil. 

She finally stood in front of me and took my hand into her smaller ones. She gave me my glasses and I quickly put them on to see her. But when I was able to see she looked completely different from the blurs I saw. She wasn’t ghostly white at all and her hair was a normal shade of blonde. Her eyes were honey brown and seemed as normal as any other person. What I was right about was that she was surely overdressed to be here, whatever here was, she looked like she belonged in a club. I was, however, still sure that what I saw before was just as real as what I was seeing now, or so...I thought.

“Did you hear me?” The woman in front of me asked me and I shook my head.

“I’m sorry ma’am what did you say?” I knotted my brows and shook my head, the woman sighed and smiled gently.

“I said it’s best if you just rest here and wait for Al to get back. He really wouldn’t like you running around his place dazed and confused.” She patted my hand then gestured me back into bed.

“Al? Alastor?” I asked. The way her eyes lit up told me that she loved hearing that name more than anything.

“Yes ma’am, he saved you, which is a bit out of character…” She trailed off for a bit but then snapped back into a happier tone. “But nonetheless he would prefer it if you stayed here and waited for him to return. If you need anything lemme know.” The woman smiled brightly and helped me back into the bed. I didn’t want to get back in bed, I wanted to grab what was left of my stuff and get out and go home. Pretend this was all a bad nightmare and just go to work the next day. There was no point in trying to get the police involved, they wouldn’t care to help someone like me. They’d probably tell me I had it coming and send me on my way telling me to deal with it myself. 

“I’d like something to drink, water or tea, please,” I told the little lady and she happily nodded and went about getting me my drink. Once she was gone I finally got to look around the room. It was small with only a bed, one small dresser at the end of the bed, a chair, and a floor-length mirror in the corner. The walls were deep red with fancy patterns I couldn’t recognize and the floor was dark wood. The woman had said this was Alastor’s place which meant I had to still be in the swamplands. There was no way he could have carried me back to any house near my neighbourhood or near the city. A knock on the door drew my attention away from trying to figure out where I was. The little woman came in with a tray in hand filled with my drink and a small snack of crackers. 

“I’d thought you might need something on your stomach, something light. Al said you had a scare so I know eating anything heavy right now wouldn’t be good for you. Hope you don’t mind.” She laid the try across my lap and handed me a cloth to tuck into my shirt. When she did that, that’s when I realized I wasn’t in the same clothes I was before. I looked down to my arms and saw I was in a nightgown. “Don’t panic, Al told me to get you out of those clothes and mend to them. They were torn and muddy and Al is such a neat freak he barely allowed you through the door before I got here. Don’t you worry none darling, I’ll fix up your clothes and have them back to you.”

“T-Thank you.” That was all I could say as I tried to take a sip of the tea in front of me. Everything felt like a threat but I should be grateful that I was alive and not dead laying at the bottom of the swamp. “Who are you?” I asked, it sounded rude but I didn’t mean for it to be.

“Oh me? I’m Mimzy!” I finally noticed her accent wasn’t anything from Louisiana.

“You’re from the north?” I asked.

“You can tell? I mean, yeah you can tell,” she laughed a bit and stuck out her hand. “Brooklyn born and raised and d-” She cut herself off on the last bit and chuckled. I didn’t want to ask her what she was going to say so I stuck out my hand and shook her. As I was about to ask her when Alastor was about to come back we both heard a door creak open from outside the bedroom. She turned and smiled and told me to wait there before putting a peak in her step and heading out the door. I sat there even tenser than before as I became anxious to see Alastor. I could hear talking from outside the room and I gripped the cup in my hand tighter. The burning feeling from the heat was the only thing keeping me grounded.

“Once again I can’t thank you enough, dear. You came at record speed to help an old friend like me.” Alastor seemed to be in a very good mood.

“Oh please, Al, that’s what friends are supposed to do. Besides, you helped me and I’m always in your debt.”

“Careful there, Mimzy, that sounds too attempting to abuse.” Alastor let out a heartful laugh then appeared in the doorway. He was facing Mimzy then when he looked at me he grew silent. His gentle smile lowered to a smirk and his eyes lowered. I took a deep breath and turned away to face the wall. 

“Would you need anything else, Al?” Mimzy asked, looking between him and me.

“A matter of fact I do, it’s outside if you don’t mind.” He looked down at Mimzy with gentle eyes and the woman shuttered before nodding and walking away.  When she was gone he slid into the room and closed the door. The sound of the door clicking shut made me jump back and try to make myself smaller as he walked towards the chair and sat down. I peaked towards him and saw how relaxed he seemed, his legs were crossed and gingers knitted together. He seemed to be waiting for me to speak before he said whatever was going through his mind. If anything was going through it that is, Alastor had the area of a man that would shut off his mind and stare for hours into a void. And with due time, that void would become uneasy and beg him to look away. 

“You saved me.” It wasn’t a question, more so a comment of almost near bewilderment. 

He chuckled lightly then pushed his thin frames up the bridge of his nose, “I did.”

“Mimzy said that isn’t like you.”

“It’s not.” He answered quickly and never losing the smirk on his face. I finally rose my head to look at him directly and he was pleased to have me do so as his eyes grew a bit. I had so many questions to ask him, the first being why was a man like him in the swamps, did he really kill those men, and what was he going to do with me.

“I can hear you thinking so loudly, I believe it’s better if you just said whatever you wish to say out loud,” Alastor told me and I turned my head away again. I tucked my loose hair behind my ear and gulped.

“When can I go home?” 

“Hmmm,” Alastor sounded almost unimpressed by my question as if he was hoping for something more existing. He didn’t answer me for a bit and almost seemed to zone out in the distance. “You can see him, can’t you?” He finally turned back towards me and it felt like he was staring into my soul. Alastor had beautiful haunting eyes like a cat and the way they tore into me with one simple question made me scared. Darkness formed around his shoulders like smoke, he didn’t seem bothered by it but he did acknowledge it.

“See who?” I asked back, he could be anyone, he could be the men outside or the men in the city. He could be an object that someone showed a little too much affection towards. Who was he?

“He told me the moment I returned home that someone would be watching me. I didn’t think he meant someone as simple as you, Miss Ester. No one can see him unless he wants to be been, no one but us.” Alastor recrossed his legs and leaned to his side to prop his elbow up to lean against it.

“Was it him that caused all this?” A fire rose from my stomach as I snapped towards Alastor. He wasn’t phased by it and simply shook his head.

“No dear, you were at the wrong place at the wrong time, this was your own foolish gain.”

“It wasn’t foolish, I had work to drop off for someone, she couldn’t-”

“So she sent you? That sounds like she knew and tried to get rid of you.”

“You watch your mouth about Chemintine Evans, she’s nothing but a good girl trying her best. There was no way she knew what was going to happen to me nor would she set up something so nasty. That girl can barely stand on her own two legs without falling over and crying at least once. She’s a mighty fine girl, ya hear?” I don’t know what came over me but it was enough to make me want to ring Alastor neck for talking bad about Chemintine. This must have been what Chemintine felt when she thought she had to come and save me from an ambush. I couldn’t allow some starlight no good white-passing man to say anything bad about her. Alastor’s eyes went wide quickly and he broke out into his loud and hearty laughter as if I said the darndest thing. I narrowed my eyes and shook my head in disbelief. 

“My apologies, please forgive me,” He clenched his chest and rolled forward holding out a hand to tell me to give him a moment. “I meant no harm, dear, I’m sure Miss Evan is the bell of the ball the way you speak of her. Why I’m glad to hear how close you two are as friends, everyone needs someone like you.” He calmed once again and sat back in his chair. This time I could tell that the lingering darkness around him was off his shoulders and he was in a good mood. 

“Mister Alastor, I’m forever grateful that you saved me but I would like to go home.” I placed the forgotten tea down on the tray and placed the tray to my side so I could pull the covers away. I swung my legs over and out and tried to stand up but my legs gave out. Alastor chuckled and stood up and walked over to give me a hand. At first, I was hesitant to take it, scared even of what he could do, but I had to get up. So I took it and gently he tugged me up and steady me so I could find my footing. When I was sure I was okay to stand I took my hand away and he complied. Now that I was standing beside him once more I felt so damn small. He was so tall and lanky and just intimidating. Alastor snapped his fingers and a knock at the door caught my attention. Mimzy pushed the door in with her foot as she held my clothes in her hand. She handed them to me and went back towards the door.

“We’ll let you get dressed Miss Ester, afterwards I’ll be driving you home, no complaints. Someone has too, the swamps are a very dangerous place to get lost in.” 

“I’m missing my jacket,” I told him, he looked towards Mimzy who nervously smiled.

“I’m sorry, doll, but I couldn’t find your jacket when Alastor brought you. I had a hard enough time finding your shoes.” She mumbled another sorry and I nodded. I was amazed she was even able to make my clothes look as good as new with how beat up they were. With that Alastor crossed his arms behind his back and spun on his heels to head out the door. Mimzy curtsied and said her goodbyes and headed right behind him closing the door.

Outside the room was as if I stepped into a private study that happened to be a house. Animal heads hung from the walls alongside guns in display cases and a few knives of all sorts. The small hallway from the bedroom to the living room was dark and once you made it out the room became lit by a fire. Beautiful furniture of reds and black sat around the fireplace and along the walls. I knew this was a cabin but it was surely of the more luxury side. Off to the side of the living room was an open archway that led to a kitchen. I saw Alastor standing over a stove with his sleeves rolled up stirring a pot. I cleared my throat and he looked over his shoulder and nodded. He placed the spoon to the side and covered the pot. He fixed himself up and grabbed a towel and cleaned his hands before slipping on a pair of gloves. I stood still and watched him head towards the door to grab his dress coat, I felt so out of place standing in his man’s home. I tried to look around once more to find Mimzy but she seemed long gone.

“Come along now, dear, we don’t want it to get too late.” He held open the door and I quickly headed out. The cabin stood on land but was surrounded on the sides by water. You had to step down from the platform onto the solid ground before heading forward towards what I believed to be a pathway out. Alastor led the way and even held the gate open for me. I saw his car parked facing forwards down the pathway and he quickly and swiftly unlocked the doors and allowed me in. I thanked him and got in, I wrapped my arms around myself and tried to make myself as small as possible. I didn’t want him to pay much attention to me. When Alastor got in he gave me a gentle smile and started the car for us to drive off.

 “I can see angels, I could see them ever since I was a child, but the devil seemed to be friendly with me and I saw him too.” The words came out of my mouth faster than I could register what I said. Alastor hummed and nodded but never looked away from the road. I knew I shouldn’t say anything else but I felt oddly safe letting him know. The confliction within my body was strong but the urge to feel...something...was stronger.

“So you saw him when I came into the shop?” Alastor asked.

“Yes, then I saw him at the party when you left, then he showed up at my church and walked me home.”

“Ha!” Alastor chuckled and shook his head. “I swear he is goofy, always flirting with the angels by pulling someone along. He told me he had a bird down here but I didn’t know that was you.” Alastor nodded his head towards me and I quickly shook my own.

“I ain’t no bird Mister, I’ve been told my whole life not to talk to the devil,” I said it sharply so he would understand. I wasn’t some fool making plans with the devil at the crossroads for some secret talent. I was just a black woman in American trying to live her life as safely as possible.

“But all rules are meant to be broken, Miss Ester. You spoke to the devil and his company.” Alastor’s voice lowered and he chuckled deeply. I didn’t know what to say and I stayed quiet for the rest of the ride. The only time I opened my mouth was to tell him where to go. It was about five minutes before we showed up at my neighbourhood and in front of my house. When I stepped out of the car I took a deep breath and looked around. Everyone seemed to either be inside or gone, it seemed a lot emptier than it normally did. I turned back around to lean down to poke my head into the window.

“Thank you once again, Mister Alastor,” I told him.

“Please, I insist you call me Alastor.”

I nodded and thought for a moment then looked back towards him, “I don’t care to know what you did to those men the other day. But I can say the world can use a lot less of them.”

“I couldn’t agree more, have a fine day Ester. I’ll see you around.”

“Same to you Alastor.” I wasn’t going to ask him what he meant by seeing me around. It would be better if I didn’t. I pulled away from the car and watched him turn the car around and pull off. As he sped down the road leaving a trail of dirt behind him I heard the sound of someone gasp.  I turned and saw some of my neighbours standing out the doors or hanging out their living room windows. I was confused but I nodded and waved to them before turning towards my house and heading up the steps. When I reached for the door it quickly pulled open and Chemintine ran out crying. 

“Ester! Ester where have you been! I came back and you were gone, you were gone and I was so worried. I asked everyone had they seen you and they said they haven’t and then I asked Mrs Birdy and she said she haven’t. I tried to call the police but they wouldn’t take the case. Ester are you okay?!” I patted Chemintine’s back knowing how worked up she was. I knew me not coming home last night wouldn’t sit well with her. I wasn't too sure if telling her what happened was a good idea or not.

“Chemintine calm down, I was only gone for a day.” I pulled away from her and cleaned her tears but Chemintine jumped back and out of my arms. She shook her head clenched on to her wrist as if he was going to fall off. I narrowed my eyes at her and gave her a look, I looked around and saw more of my neighbours coming out to see what was going on. “Chem what in the world, calm down it was only a day. I’m fine and I’m here and I would love to take a bath right now.” I shook my head and tried to move past her but she wouldn’t move and just shook her head.

“E-Ester...you’ve been gone for three days.” 

What?

[gyrlversion]

32 Products Thatll Have Any Miyazaki Fan Squealing

We hope you love the products we recommend! Just so you know, BuzzFeed may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. Oh, and FYI — prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication.

1.

A set of tree spirits from Princess Mononoke you can add to a planter or simply keep at your desk for some much-needed company.

Amazon

Added bonus? They glow in the dark!

Promising review: “Look very cute on my desk next to my other geeky figures. Paint job was tidy. The pearly look really helps them look more like spirits (I had initially looked for flat white, but was pleasantly surprised with this instead).” —Elizabeth Aurich

Get five from Amazon for $4.99.

2.

A Totoro water bottle to sip out of on your commute while wishing you could travel via Catbus.

Amazon

Promising review: “I love this thermos! Super cute, easy to clean, durable, and easy to transport. PLUS it’s easy to bring drinks into venues like movie theaters because it looks more like a figure than a thermos” —Samantha McBride

Get it from Amazon for $15.99.

3.

A Calcifer quote pin inspired by Howl’s Moving Castle that’ll definitely ~spark joy~ when you add it to your bag or jacket.

5.

Miyazaki socks featuring a variety of the films, so you’ll never have to choose a favorite flick while accessorizing.

Amazon

I have these socks and they make me smile every time I wear them. I like rocking them with booties or letting the characters peek out of the tops of my sneakers. They’re the perfect combination of quirky and cozy. Seems like the people of Amazon agree with me, as they have a 4.9-star rating!

Get a set of four from Amazon for $11.85 (one size fits most).

6.

A pocket tee featuring Ponyo and a side of ramen, essential for wearing during your next cozy movie marathon at home.

BoxLunch

Promising review: “Love this shirt! Really soft, and fit perfectly! I saw it in stores but they didn’t have my size so ordered online. It does run a little big, at least for my frame, I usually wear a size small but XS fit perfect.” —Betty1004

Get it from BoxLunch for $21.67 (available in women’s sizes S–XL).

7.

Spirited Away on Blu-ray, because literally 1,820 fans have taken the time to give it a 5-star rating so you DEFINITELY need it in your movie collection.

Amazon

Spirited Away was the first Miyazaki film I ever watched and it quickly got me hooked. It’s a trip, as any real fan will know. You might as well own a hard copy so you can watch it over and over and display it proudly.

Promising review: “If you’ve never seen a movie by Hayao Miyazaki and you want to see what all the fuss is about, buy this one. It’s very unique, quirky, and somewhat confusing. But don’t let that bother you. You’ll want to watch it again and again (as my family has). It’s the story of a girl who walks into a strange world, then ends up on a quest to save several loved ones. It’s best to know as little as possible before watching it.” —JuLee Rudolf

Get it from Amazon for $15.60.

8.

Studio Ghibli shot glasses you can break out to impress your fellow Miyazaki-loving buddies. Just don’t drink like No-Face, ingesting everything and anything, and you’ll be golden.

Complexwish / Etsy

Promising review: “Beautifully hand painted!! Super impressed with the quality and I will definitely be using these in the near future.” —Josh Schott

Get a single shot glass from Complexwish on Etsy for $10+ (available in five styles or as a full set).

9.

Or a No-Face bank that actually SHOULD consume all of your coins for safe keeping

Amazon

Promising review: “This bank is adorable. It opens at the big mouth and tilts the coins to slide inside. It makes some noises and then burps. Pretty funny. Great incentive to put lots of change in it!” —AK

Get it from Amazon for $18.

10.

Minimalist Studio Ghibli–inspired posters, perfect for incorporating the whimsical movies and their characters into your home.

Amazon

Promising review: “These posters are just as vibrant and detailed as shown in the photographs. This was an impulse buy; we didn’t need anything new. Though as soon as I saw them, I showed them to my spouse and we knew we had to have them. Our friends have made countless comments/compliments and requested where they could get them. I only include this information, because I feel it’s important to note that we’re not just biased toward them. So grateful to have something this lovely in my home.” —Jenny

Get four from Amazon for $72+ (available in two sizes).

11.

A Porco Rosso sticker you can refer to anytime someone tries to pull the old “when pigs fly” line on ya’.

Redbubble

Get it from Redbubble for $2.68+ (available in sizes S–XL).

Amazon, amazon.com

Promising review: “I think this is a super cute mug. My favorite color is orange so I am happy that I was able to choose this option. It holds 16 ounces of liquid comfortably. I think the silicone lid is a great addition as it helps with the steeping process, or if you are a slow tea drinker it helps to maintain heat in the mug. I am definitely going to gift this in the future to a friend or two and most likely purchase more for myself in other colors.” —Mel

Get it from Amazon for $9.99+ (available in four colors).

13.

An illustration of the bathhouse from Spirited Away printed directly onto an old dictionary page, a must-have for your very own bathroom (gross sludge and bath tokens not included).

PrintsWithStyle / Etsy

Promising review: “OH MY GOSH — THIS IS AMAZING! The colors are SUPER VIBRANT and just really great quality. Shipment was packaged with great care. Thank you so much!” —Sparrow82

Get it from PrintsWithStyle on Etsy for $9.99.

14.

A plush version of Jiji you’ll love snuggling up with while watching Kiki’s Delivery Service for the thousandth time. Just don’t try to feed him pancakes (he’s a stuffed animal).

amazon.com, amazon.com

I have one of these little guys and just love him. A friend gave him to me and I keep him in my bedroom window — just like the real Jiji.

Promising review: “This Jiji is so cute!! I love him. Yes, he is small, but I think that adds to his endearing charm. His fur is very soft, some sort of microfiber perhaps. I like his weight from the beans, he feels good to hold. Wouldn’t change a thing about him and highly recommend this purchase!” —Bananagus

Get it from Amazon for $11.05.

15.

A replica of Howl’s ring, so you and your own Calcifer can feel connected at all times.

sophofcourse / Etsy

Promising review: “Amazing quality! The gem and details are well put on, and the metal is very solid. I’d completely recommend it! Make sure to double check your ring size and you’re set.” —Wynne Elgin Gallahan

Get it from sophofcourse on Etsy for $12.52 (available in UK sizes J–Z).

16.

A notebook and pen that’ll make you feel like you just ventured through the bushes and landed on Totoro’s belly for a nap every time you open it.

Amazon

Promising review: “I was so excited to find this! Cute little journal with fun pen! Pen even has another small replacement ink cartridge.” —cat

Get it from Amazon for $13.99.

17.

A necklace you’ll find to be as loyal of a companion as Jiji is to Kiki during her first flights.

Hot Topic

Promising review: “Really happy with it. Something I didn’t know — the tail swings as you move because it is attached kind of like a hinge. Jiji isn’t stuck in one place on the broom. He can slide from side to side, which I think is cute also.” —BROOKIASAURUS

Get it from Hot Topic for $9.90.

18.

A coat hook that recreates the iconic scene where Totoro and Satsuki wait together in the rain, sure to bring a smile to your face every time you enter and exit your home.

amazon.com, amazon.com

Promising review: “I am so happy I decided to buy these hooks. The quality is above and beyond anything that I was expecting for the price. It is very sturdy. The hooks are generously sized and it looks great! Exactly what I was looking for to hold dog leashes and keys! Even my husband likes it and he isn’t a fan of decorating the house according to my Totoro/Ghibli obsession” —AllieKryptonite

Get it from Amazon for $16.99.

19.

A T-shirt that’ll help you pay tribute to arguably the fiercest BOSS in the Ghibli universe; Yubaba.

Hot Topic

Get it from Hot Topic for $16.03+ (available in sizes XS–3XL).

20.

Or Kiki’s Delivery Service stickers you can use to cover every inch of your laptop with your favorite young witch.

Amazon

Promising review: “Say no more… I would buy these again and again if I had the need for more stickers! I bought these to decorate my GF’s birthday gifts and she absolutely loves them! I used double-sided tape to stick them on the gift wrapping so she could save them for her own needs.” —Rhi0

Get a set of 15 from Amazon for $5.99.

22.

A Catbus planter you can leave on your desk and count on to provide a mid-day ~pick me up~.

amazon.com, Amazon

Promising review: “Super cute. I love the hand-painted quality, makes it extra adorable. I don’t have a succulent at the moment… so, it’s holding my pens until I do.” —Sara

Get it from Amazon for $27.38 (available in three styles).

23.

A Calcifer sticker that’ll have anyone who notices its sassy message saying “oooooh, burn!”

Redbubble

Get it from Redbubble for $2.68.

24.

A soot sprite window cling for keeping you company in your car. Be sure to keep some star-shaped konpeito on hand in case it gets hungry!

amazon.com, amazon.com

Promising review: “My soot sprite rests in the corner of my driver’s side window as if he’s peeking around the corner. I am amazed at how well the suction cup is holding him in place through this incredible heat.” —RobinsonTribe

Get it from Amazon for $9.97.

25.

Or a soot sprite dad hat to keep the sun out of your eyes the next time you venture into a dusty, but magical house, looking to spot one of these creatures.

Hot Topic

Promising review: “I love this hat! It’s adjustable, comfortable, and very well made. It’s a nice subtle way to show some Ghibli pride.” —SIPPYSIPPY

Get it from Hot Topic for $11.83.

26.

A phone case chock-full of Studio Ghibli characters, so perfect you’ll never want to buy a new device again.

Amazon, amazon.com

Promising review: “If you are familiar with the movie that came out, I must say, this is COMPLETELY different. Yes…it’s mostly the same in the beginning but other than that, much of the plot is different as well as the ending. I really loved this book and love Howl’s character. It’s a ‘feel good’ book that gets you hooked right away.” —~Butterfly214~

Get it from Amazon for $8.54.

28.

Leggings with an all-over print of Kiki, her bow, and Jiji (obvs) that’ll accompany your broomstick nicely.

Hot Topic

Promising review: “I cannot say how satisfied and happy I am with these leggings! They’re comfortable and stunning, gorgeous! Absolutely in love. Definitely a must have without a doubt. Worth every single penny!” —DEC25STEPHANIE

Get them from Hot Topic for $19.95 (available in sizes 0–4).

29.

An entire book about Hayao Miyazaki’s life and work you’ll definitely want to read from cover-to-cover then proudly place on top of your coffee table for all to see.

Amazon

Promising review: “Susan Napier has been writing about animation for years, and she has a special place in her heart for Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki. That passion shows through in this volume. If you have any interest in Miyazaki, Studio Ghibli, or any of their works, this is a must-have book.” —Fumitaka Joe

Get it from Amazon for $16.50+ (available for Kindle and hardcover).

30.

A temporary Catbus tattoo you can wear as a test run before deciding to fully commit to getting the real thing.

31.

A Totoro crossbody bag that looks like a vintage book cover and will leave you plenty of room to store all the seeds you discover in the forest.

Hot Topic

Promising review: “Really cute and well made! It’s been my go-to when I want to carry a small bag with just the bare essentials, and I always get compliments on it from other Ghibli fans.” —BRITT G

Get it from Hot Topic for $27.99.

32.

And a pocket tee with a hidden surprise any Studio Ghibli fan will be delighted to discover and show off time and time again.

Dorkypop

When you pull the pocket of the shirt down it reveals No Face’s monstrous mouth ready to consume gold (and possibly…you!) There are also adorable designed featuring Totoro and the soot sprites!

Promising review: “The shirt is absolutely amazing! High quality and not thin and flimsy. The shirt fits true to size for a unisex-style shirt, so I purchased a large (I’m 5’10” and like my shirts a bit looser). The shipping was extremely prompt and the shirt came with a personalized card inside, which I thought was really sweet. I will be purchasing from Dorkypop again!” —Patricia V.

Get it from Dorkypop for $32 (available in unisex sizes XS, M–2XL).

You, patiently waiting for your Studio Ghibli products to arrive:

Studio Ghibli

Some reviews have been edited for length and/or clarity.

The post 32 Products Thatll Have Any Miyazaki Fan Squealing appeared first on Gyrlversion.

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[tayegi]

Equilibrium Ch. 11

Previous Chapters: Prologue Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 10

Next Chapter: Ch 12

Word Count: 3,300

You don't sleep well these days. And this morning is no exception. As always, you jerk into consciousness with a small gasp at the crack of dawn, sweat running down your spine and your chest heaving with exertion. Another anxiety nightmare…

Except the strong arms looped around your waist inform you that it's no mere dream…

The sudden tensing of your muscles reveals that you're awake, and before you can forcibly relax and feign unconsciousness, Jungkook lurches forward to bury his face in your neck, "Good morning, beautiful."

You yelp in surprise, "Jimin," you hiss to him as a warning when his hand begins to snake under your shirt.

"He's in the bathroom," Jungkook explains as he cups a breast.

You shoot upright, but true to his word, Jimin's side of the bed is empty. Somewhere in the distance, you're faintly aware of the sound of running water. Disheartened, you sink back in bed and numbly allow Jungkook to fondle your chest. He's getting himself worked up. You can tell by the way his breath hitches and his hands fan out to grab at the flare of your hip with a breathless moan. Dread fills your stomach, "Jimin's right here," you hiss at him, batting at his sticky hands.

He ignored you and tries to slip his hand under the waistband of your pajamas instead, "We'll be quick."

When his fingers slide up the length of your cloth-covered slit, you squirm away, inadvertently knocking back against the front of his body. The hardness pressed against your ass is predictable to a fault. You almost want to roll your eyes at the utter monotony of his incessant morning wood. But another strange hardness pressed against the back of your neck… that's new.

You slowly roll over to face him. Jungkook stares back with dilated eyes, clearly misinterpreting your actions as he runs his tongue over his lips. "Mmm, jagi—"

You press a hand to his mouth before he can kiss you. He huffs in irritation, but you ignore him to hook two fingers under the chain around his neck instead. Slowly, you lift the strangely familiar embroidered chain up to eyelevel. The carved stone pendant pops out from under his shirt a second later. Your heart sinks in your chest.

"Jungkook! What is this?" You anxiously scold him, "What were you thinking? You can't wear this out and about!"

"Why not?" he huffs, fondly stroking his fingers over your carved names in the stone.

"What if Jimin sees?!"

He snorts, "Who cares?"

Your eyebrows knit together in concern, but before you can voice your worries, the bathroom door suddenly bursts open. You gasp in surprise and hurriedly dive forward to close your fist around the pendant, hiding it from view.

"Hey, you kids are awake already?" Jimin cheerfully calls out as he dries his hair.

"N-no," you stammer as you pull the blanket over Jungkook's head, "We're going back to bed now."

"Okay," Jimin chimes back as he pulls on his clothes, utterly clueless to what lies beneath the sheets, "I'm going to the office early today to work a bit, but I'll see you guys tonight!"

You're terrified that Jungkook will give it away, so you tighten the blanket around his head to cover his revealing facial expressions, and paste on a wide grin for the older man, "Sounds good, have a good day, baby!"

"Thanks, hon."

You wait until Jimin's left the room and count down from three under your breath before you finally wrench the covers off of Jungkook.

"Eugh, it was so hot in there!" he complains as he sputters for air.

You ignore him and tighten your grip around the pendant, "What the hell is this, Jungkook?" You hiss at him under your breath.

Jungkook looks down by instinct, as though noticing the necklace for the first time, "Oh, this? Where's yours, jagi?"

His tone is casual, but you can read his thinly veiled concern in the knit of his brows, "I don't know," but seeing the way his frown increase, you quickly backtrack, "It's probably in my jewelry box or something… But you're avoiding the question. Why are you wearing this?"

Jungkook shrugs and brings curls his hand around yours, "It's pretty, isn't it?"

Dread slides into stomach when his fingers begin to stroke the back of your hand which still holds the pendant, as though tracing your combined names through your skin. You slip your hand out of his grip in dismay, "Yes, but wearing it to bed? Are you crazy?! Jimin will see!"

Jungkook continues to trace the characters of your names in the stone, undeterred by your resistance, "Who cares?"

You choke back the panic that threatens to overwhelm you, "Jungkookie… You promised to play it cool, remember?"

He doesn't respond for a moment, content to simply examine you through half-lidded dark eyes. Your chest clenches painfully from anxiety, and you rush forward to press a kiss against the thumb pressed against the pendant. Instantly, Jungkook relaxes the tight hold of his fist at the feeling of your soft lips, "It's so stupid that we can't wear these around," he grumbles as he pulls the chain off.

"We don't need to tote couple's accessories around to prove anything," you assure him, smiling widely as relief slams into you from his reluctant obedience.

Jungkook automatically matches your smile and slides a hand into your hair, "That's right," he agrees, "We have nothing to prove. Because we both know that you're all mine."

You swallow hard, "That's right."

And then you lean forward to kiss him before he can notice how badly your hands tremble.

Another Saturday evening. Another elaborately planned outing with the boys closing up in the bedroom. And another frustrating tryst with Jimin moaning and panting inches away from you, yet just out of arm's reach. Because Jungkook never fails to block the older man from you, his firm body as obstructive as a wall of solid steel separating you from your freedom. So all you can do is lie there, eyes squeezed shut and ear pressed tightly to Jungkook's chest, desperately attempting to tease out Jimin's melodic moans from Jungkook's heavy pants.

You feel trapped—like a little bird fluttering helplessly against the iron bars of your cage. There's nothing you can do to escape, and you don't dare complain one peep in case this shatters the fragile crystalline balance of your world.

After the two men finish, they quickly fall asleep. As always, Jungkook is curled protectively around you, shielding you off from the world. But when his breath evens out to soft snores, you muster the courage to tug his arm from your waist in order to sit up in bed.

You drink in Jimin's slumbering figure with cautious sips, perfectly aware of the consequences if caught. But you can't help yourself. Even a domesticated pet needs a taste of freedom.

Jimin looks so soft as he curls up around himself on his side of the bed that seems so empty without you to fill it with. Not even a month ago, you would be stroking the damp fringe out of his eyes and wrapping your arms tightly around his middle to spoon him the whole night through. Oh, how the times have changed.

A bitter taste fills your mouth as you trail your eyes up and down his handsome features, taking in the plush redness of his parted lips up to the cute furrow of his brows. You would do anything to smooth away his little frown and kiss his troubles away.

Almost instinctively, you jerk forward to try touch him, only to find your hand pinned down to the bed by something heavy. Bewildered, you look down and your eyes bulge in shock to find Jungkook's hand clamped tight around your wrist. Unnerved, you try to shake yourself loose, but even in his sleep, he holds firm.

You stare back at Jimin, yearning to touch him, to no avail. Jungkook has got you completely locked up. Claustrophobia bubbles up your throat. There's nowhere for you to go. You're trapped.

"Maybe we should have waited for Jimin to come home first," you say uneasily as Jungkook drags you by the hand into the bar.

"Nah, it's fine."

"Don't you want your friends to meet him as well?"

"They've met him in passing a few times already," he says, brushing off your concern, "No, they really just want to meet you."

"Me?" you repeat in surprise, "Why on earth would they want to meet me?"

He simply grins at you, "Just hurry up, baby," he says, leading you through the crowded pub to a high table in the back where a group of three young men around Jungkook's age gather around.

They perk up at the sight of your approach, "Ah, there you are, Jungkook!" One of them crows, reaching over to clasp Jungkook on the back as a greeting, "You're late… as always."

Jungkook simply grins, "Sorry, I had to pick someone up… Everyone, this is ___. ___. These are my friends Yugyeom, Mingyu, and Dokyeom," he says, pointing to each one of them return.

You instantly bow your head, "It's nice to meet you."

"Wait, ___..." Yugyeom says with a frown, "Why does your name sound so familiar…?"

"Ah!" the person who must be Mingyu cries out in realization, "Jungkook, is this the girlfriend you told us so much about?"

Your face immediately blanches of all color as you slowly turn to face your lover. But he simply laughs and throws his arms around your waist, fondly hugging you to him, "Yep. Isn't she cute?"

"Wow, I can't believe she actually exists," Dokyeom teases, "We all thought you were making her up."

"No way," Jungkook protests as he possessively nuzzles his face into your neck, "I just didn't want you creeps ogling at my girlfriend."

Yugyeom makes a sound of disgust in the back of his throat, but Mingyu simply laughs, "Sit down, you two love birds, and help us plan this trip."

"Trip?" you repeat in surprise as you take the offered seat next to Jungkook.

"Yeah, I mentioned a few weeks ago that we were planning a graduation trip to Seoul, remember, baby?"

"Ah… That's right."

"That's why you're here, isn't it, ___-ssi?" Dokyeom asks with a grin, "To keep track of our plans and make sure Jungkookie-ah stays out of trouble?"

You awkwardly rub the back of your neck and laugh, "Of course," you hesitantly play along, "I've got to make sure you guys take care of my… uh… my boyfriend." Luckily no one notices how difficult it was to get that word out.

Your simple statement makes Jungkook preen with pride. He slings an arm around your shoulders and plants a kiss against your cheek. You're flustered from the unexpected display of affection but Jungkook's friends are a thousand times worse off.

"Yuck!" "Ugh get a room!"

But he simply laughs and kisses you again, this time just under the chin, "Y'all are just jealous."

Mingyu shakes his head in disgust, "I have never seen this kid act this way before."

"You're so fucking soft now, Jeon."

You blink in surprise, "Is he not normally like this?"

"No way."

"Yeah, you should see the way he goes through girls like they're—"

But a hard look from Jungkook shuts him up.

You look back and forth between the two men in curiosity, "Like they're what?"

Jungkook simply laughs and nuzzles into your neck, "Don't listen to them, baby."

His three friends jeer at the affectionate gesture, making you push him away with embarrassment. Yugyeom fake gags, "Eugh, I've known this kid since Freshman year, yet I've never seen him like this around a girl before. ___, what did you do to get him to settle down like this?"

You nervously fold your hands in your lap, "I… I have no idea."

"She didn't have to do anything," Jungkook huffs in irritation, "How could I even look at any other girls with ___ around?"

"Never would I have imagined I'd live to see the day Jeon Jungkook goes for quality over quantity," Dokyeom wryly muses.

"___ must be pretty special to be able to tame the wild playboy."

"Of course she's special," Jungkook hotly insists, surprisingly not even the tiniest bit embarrassed about this passionate display in front of his friends, "She's the only person who actually understands me."

That makes you look up in alarm. Understand him? Where the hell did he get that notion from? Since when have you had the faintest idea what occurred in that enigmatic mind of his? Your chest tightens with anxiety. "The waiter's side-eyeing us for sitting for so long and not ordering anything… Let's get a drink, Jungkook."

"Of course. Anything you want, jagi."

Anything you want…? Your cheeks twitch and your jaw aches from the effort of upholding the fake grin plastered across your face. When has Jungkook ever taken what you wanted into consideration? You widen your smile and order the drink Jungkook prefers.

"Jimin?" you call out as you knock on the bathroom door, nervous, "We're going to be late."

It's the morning of Jungkook's graduation, and you've long dressed and prepared for the ultra-important ceremony. To your surprise, Jimin, who had previously been by far the most excited for the ceremony, is still in the bathroom. Jimin often takes longer getting ready in the mornings than you and Jungkook, but this amount of time is abnormal, even for him. Jimin would never miss something so important to Jungkook.

"Jimin…? Are you okay?"

The sound of retching is your only response. Your eyes pop open in realization and you hurriedly let yourself into the room. Jimin is praying at the porcelain altar, so pale and sickly that his face has taken an ominous greenish glow. He looks up through bloodshot eyes at your entrance and feebly attempts to ward you back.

"Ah, ___-ah, no! I'm so gross right now."

You ignore his discomfort and crouch behind where he's kneeling at the toilet bowl to rub his shoulders, "You poor thing. How did this happen? Did you drink last night?"

He whimpers as he leans into your soothing touch, "N-no. I think it was something I ate."

You wince as you remember the seafood dinner Jimin had for a company function last night. "Oh no. I told you to be careful with the raw fish," you lightly scold him, "I'll get you something to drink, okay?"

"Ugh, hurry, ___. We need to get to Jungkook's graduation in time."

You nod, "Just wait one minute." And with that, you get up and take off for the kitchen. You grab a can of ginger ale from the fridge and pour it into a glass with plenty of ice. Before you head back into the bathroom, you glance over at the clock on the mantle. You're dismayed to find that it's already a quarter to noon… The two of you are going to be late.

"Jimin, we need to—oh shit," you gasp when you take in the sight of your boyfriend hunched over the toilet, nosily expelling the contents of his stomach.

You hurriedly place the ginger ale down before wetting a towel and heading over to crouch beside him. Jimin groans softly in protest, but you ignore him and flush the toilet for him before wiping his mouth.

"___, we need to leave," he weakly grumbles.

"We're already late," you gently inform him as you towel off the sweat on his forehead.

Jimin gasps and makes a gesture as though to get up, but you quickly hold him back, "Ah, ___, let go. We have to make it to the ceremony! You know how much this means to Jungkook!"

"I do, but you're in no condition to even leave the house."

He makes a sound of protest, "I can! Don't worry about me."

Still, you hold him down, "Come on, baby. Do you really want to lose your lunch in front of everyone there?"

That makes him pause. He slowly sits back down on the floor, "But… But Jungkook!"

"He'll understand," you assure him with a little squeeze to his shoulder, "Let's just get you back into bed, okay?"

Jimin gnaws his bottom lip in indecision. But he can't deny the logic of your words and after a second, he concedes with a deep sigh, "Okay."

You smile in relief as you help him to his feet, "Okay."

"Hello?"

"Where are you?"

You wince at the volume of Jungkook's voice and slap a hand over the receiver before tiptoeing out of the bedroom where Jimin's soundly sleeping, "Jungkook, are you still at the ceremony?"

"It just finished. Where the hell are you?"

You gnaw your bottom lip, "At home," you admit in a small voice, "Jimin got really sick and he was in no condition to step outside of the house."

"So?" is his blunt response, "I didn't ask about hyung. I asked about you."

Even over the phone, you can hear the strain in his voice from the effort of holding back his temper, "I couldn't just leave him alone," you quickly defend yourself, "He is seriously sick—like puking everywhere sick."

"So that idiot drank too much again. Who cares? That's his own fault."

"No, Jungkook it wasn't that," you exclaim, but it feels like yelling at a wall at this point, "He didn't drink last night. He's seriously really sick!"

There's a slight pause on the other end. Then—"You still should have come, ___. You knew how much this meant to me."

Your stomach clenches with guilt, "I am so sorry, Jungkook. I did not expect this to happen, and I really did want to be there, I swear."

There's a long silence on the other end that increases your anxiety until Jungkook finally sighs, "It's okay, jagi," he says in a gruff voice, "But maybe I should come home and check on you."

"No, don't do that!" You exclaim, wildly waving your arms even though you know he can't see, "What about your trip with your friends?"

He hesitates on the other end, "They would understand."

"No, you've been planning this for weeks! I know how excited you are for this graduation trip. Please don't let me ruin this for you."

"But, jagi—"

"No, Jungkook," you firmly stop him, "You deserve this."

You know he's considering your words by the drag of silence that ensues. But it seems that your argument has had an effect on him for how he exhales deeply after a few seconds, "Fine. I'll go… But I'm nervous about this whole situation."

"Nothing will happen, Jungkook," you assure him.

Still, he hesitates, "But you'll be alone with hyung for a really long time…"

"He's extremely sick," you remind him, "He's probably going to be bedridden all weekend."

"Ok," he reluctantly agrees, "But don't forget that you're mine, ___."

A lump forms in your throat at his ominous words and you have to swallow a few times before you can respond, "That's right…"

"And if I find out that you've let someone else touch what's mine… You'll regret it."

Your throat tightens, "Don't worry, Jungkook... I'm all yours."

He heaves a sigh of relief on the other end, "I'll be back on Monday, jagi. I love you."

You bite down on your bottom lip hard enough to draw blood, "Be safe."

When you finally end the call, you're surprised to find your knees trembling and your cellphone so slippery from your sweaty palms that it nearly slides out from between your fingers. You hastily wipe your palms on your pants and rush to the kitchen to prepare soup for Jimin.

A/N: Thanks for reading and please do not ask me about updates ^^

Also, anyone who says anything gross or misogynistic will be blocked, so please be respectful!

[twilight-alchemist]

Shelter

read on Ao3 http://archiveofourown.org/works/10885116/chapters/24188529

Summary: Saitama quit her training halfway through. What’s the point of great strength when she couldn’t save her family? Lost and bereft she returned to her home town to get her life back together, but that hasn’t been going so well. Every day is just like the last until a fiery comet crashes behind her house and she meets Genos, an alien cyborg trying to find the monster that murdered her family. Domestic gay nonsense ensues.

Chapter 1: Stayin’ Alive

It’s quiet. It’s always quiet at night out here in the middle of nowhere, unless Rover hears something to bark at. Right now it’s just the hum of appliances and the soft sound of MTV on in the living room, since said hell hound is asleep beneath Saitama’s feet. She watches his feet wiggle as he dreams and absentmindedly reaches down to rub the plush fur between his ears. Saitama finds herself humming along to the music as she picks at her food. Her appetite hasn’t gotten itself together yet today, and box mac and cheese is doing nothing to perk up her listless stomach. She hates to waste food though. Grumbling, she manages to get down a few more bites before she scrapes the rest of the sad cheese goo into the trash and tosses the bowl towards the sink. It bounces of the pile of dishes in the sink and flops onto the counter. She lingers a moment staring at the sink full of dirty dishes, feeling guilty it’s not clean, but not guilty enough to do the dishes just yet. A problem for the Saitama of tomorrow.

She moves into the living room to flick the TV off. The silence is immediately suffocating, and she darts back into the kitchen to turn on the radio. Spirit in the Sky is playing, and she fiddles with the antenna to lessen the static. Rover grumbles in his sleep and rolls over onto his back, sleeping like a starfish. The song plays on and she finds herself singing along.

“Going up to the spirit in the sky, that’s where I’m gonna go when I die. When I die and they lay me to rest, gonna go to the place that’s the best.” A memory surfaces unbidden, of giggles and weed smoke and late nights listening to the radio. She’s sitting next to Theo on their beat up couch and he is smiling so wide, laughing as he sings along to the radio. He’s horribly off key and missing words but his eyes are sparkling with joy. Ace is laughing where he’s sitting on the floor of their flat, singing along as the chorus. Their ruckus has drowned out the surrounding noise of the city, and it feels like they are the only people in the world. It feels like home. The sadness rises up in her so fast she feels like she might choke, and she turns the radio off. It takes her a few moments to realize she’s gripping the kitchen counter so hard that her knuckles have turned white. She counts the pink flowers on her kitchen wallpaper as she packs the sadness away, shoves it back down to some forgotten place inside herself. Reminds herself to breath, in and out, in and out. She lets go of the counter and pointedly ignores the fact that she’s bent the counter top. The phone ringing startles her so bad that she almost falls on the floor. Swearing under her breath she darts over to the phone and picks up.

“Hello?”

“Saitama! I haven’t seen you in town all week and you haven’t called me or answered your phone, are you doing okay?” It’s Mumen. Saitama winces at her tone; she’s in trouble.

“I’m alright Mumen, I’m just… tired. Sorry I haven’t called.” Sai winds the phone cord around her hand and fidgets with it. She wants so badly to confide in Mumen, to tell her she’s not okay, but that would mean making Mumen worry, and her friend has enough on her plate as it is. A half-lie isn’t so bad, right? She really is tired after all. “I promise I’ll come by soon.” Saitama says. “Are you working tomorrow?”

“Yeah. I have my lunch break at 12, want to meet at the diner?”

“Sure Mumen, that sounds great.”

There’s a heavy pause, and Sai realizes belatedly that she hadn’t put any false enthusiasm into her voice. Shit.

“Saitama do you need me to come over? I can come over right now-“

“Mumen honestly I’m okay.”

“You don’t sound okay. It’s been over a year and you haven’t gotten any better. I know you want space and time to mourn but I’m worried about you. Let me help you! You can’t keep pushing everyone away.”

‘Oh yes I can’ Saitama thinks. Her depression is her problem and she’s not dragging anyone down with her, especially not someone as perfect as Mumen.

“You worry too much.” Sai says. “I’ll see you tomorrow okay?”

Mumen huffs out a sigh that crackles through the phone line. “Alright. Give Rover a hug for me.”

“I will.”

“Goodnight Sai.”

“Night.”

She puts the phone down on the wall with a click, resisting the urge to call Mumen back and spill her guts. It’s already 9 at night, and Mumen always goes to bed at 9. Mumen’s one of those freaky morning people.

Saitama sighs loudly and thumps her head against the wall a few times. She knows Mumen has every right to be worried. Apparently her theatrics were loud enough to rouse Rover, who had gotten up and was now scratching at the door. “Okay buddy give me a second.” Sai grabs her winter coat and shoves her feet into her worn out boots. She pushes the door open and Rover bounds out into the snow. It’s a bitterly cold night and Sai shivers despite her oversized coat. She goes about her nightly routine, checking to make sure all the animals are still warm inside the barn and refilling empty water buckets. She tosses her girls some extra hay because they give her the puppy dog eyes. Sai’s always weak to the puppy dog eyes, and her animals know it. She steps out of the barn and glances over at the garden. She hasn’t spoken to them yet today, and knows she won’t sleep well if she doesn’t. Not that she sleeps particularly well anyway.

There’s a large quartz stone placed in the center of the snow covered garden. She’d found it in the woods a year ago and placed it here as a memorial of sorts. Her friend’s graves are far away from here, but she feels as though this is where they truly rest.

“Hey Theo, that song you used to love was just on the radio. I know you loved that song in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way because you thought Jesus loving you would upset the homophobes, but I really do hope you’re up there in the sky living it up with the big guy just to prove those fuckers wrong.” Sai lifts her head up to the sky and takes in the myriad of stars above her. “Ace you’d love the stars tonight. I can see Sirius, and Rigel, and Polaris.” She sighs deeply, as though she could push out her sadness within her breath.

“I know there’s more stars that you showed me but I can’t remember. I’m getting rusty without you here always waxing poetic about the sky.” For a while she just gazes upward, taking in the cosmos above her. The stars used to make her feel alive, but now all she feels is cold.

“I miss you guys so much. I miss you both so much.”

The sound of Rover barking his head off startles her out of her reverie.

“Rover what the hell.” Saitama mumbles as she jogs around the side of the house to where her dog is going bananas. When she sees what Rover barking at, she freezes on the spot, mouth hanging open and eyes wide. There’s a comet falling across the sky. A HUGE comet. It’s almost blindingly to look at in the darkness, bright and fiery like the sun itself is falling to the earth. She watches as the comet burns across the sky and gasps in frozen air as she suddenly remembers to breathe. The comet sails far overhead and crashes with a sound like a train collision somewhere way back in the forest behind her property.

“Holy shit.”

Rover has stopped barking but his black fur is all puffed up in agitation, making him look ridiculous. Sai considers going out in the woods to see if she can find the meteor, but it’s cold as balls and she’s tired. Maybe in the morning. She gives one last look out at the dark forest, before Saitama drags Rover back inside and heads up to her bedroom.

She can’t sleep. All she can think of is the comet. Is it a meteor? What if its aliens? She scolds herself for being silly. ‘I’ve been watching too much Star Wars’ she thinks to herself. What if it was some kind of satellite? That seemed a lot more plausible, but that could lead to trouble. What if someone comes looking for it? That’d be a pain in the butt. She sighs and stretches, pushing Rover over a few inches where he’s being a bed hog. It’s just a stupid space rock. No big deal. Go to sleep.

She wishes Ace and Theo were there with her so they could be excited together. The longing curls around her heart and squeezes tightly.

Two hours of staring at the ceiling later Saitama gets up. She grabs the bong off her dresser and lights the bowl, inhaling. Holds the smoke in her lungs, exhales, coughs. Rinse wash repeat until her head is foggy and she’s bone tired. She crawls back into bed and promptly passes out.

Saitama jerks awake at 11, remembers she has lunch at 12 with Mumen, and panics. She’d slept straight through her alarm. She throws the covers off, gets dressed faster than she has in months, and rushes through her morning routine. Feed the animals, open up the barn, get off her smelly barn clothes, shower, put on nice not smelly clothes, get in the freezing car. Her old truck starts on the first try and Saitama counts that as a small blessing. It takes her 15 minutes to get into town and its 11:50, so she’s only going to be 5 minutes late.

Saitama stumbles into the diner and Mumen greets her with raised eyebrows. “Did you just wake up?”

“’Course not.” Sai says. Her body betrays her and she yawns.

“You’re a terrible lair.” Mumen says, but she’s grinning regardless. “It’s good to see you.”

“You too.” Saitama flops down into the booth and steals a sip of Mumen’s coffee, which she immediately regrets. “Ugh how do you drink it black you weirdo.”

“The same way you drink it with 3 tablespoons of sugar.” Mumen looks over as the door opens with a jingle. “I hope you don’t mind that I invited King.”

“Of course not.” Saitama says, turning to wave as King comes in.

King sits next to Saitama and sighs. “Sai, what on earth are you wearing.”

“Neon is in King. Everyone knows that.” Sai says.

“Well my eyes are melting.” She deadpans. “Also those patterns together are awful.”

“Shut up Ms. Farah Fawcett hair. Your mom jeans suck.”

King suddenly tenses as though she remembered something, and leans over the table conspiringly. “Did ya’ll see that fireball in the sky last night?”

“Yeah it came right over the farm.” Saitama says. “What do you think it was?”

“Just a meteor of course.” Mumen says.

“I don’t think so, I think it might be some Russian satellite.” King says in a stage whisper. “I told pa about it and he called the government and everything.”

“King, your dad is paranoid, and you worry too much. Stuff with Russia is still a mess but it’s more deescalated right now. You don’t have to be so anxious about it anymore.” Sai says as she pokes through the menu.

“Do you think they’ll send anyone?” Mumen asks.

“Who?” King says, engrossed in the menu. Saitama doesn’t know why any of them bother to read the menu. This diner has been exactly the same since they were all small enough to fit on one side of the booth together. They’ve all memorized the ancient menu. That’s what happens when you live in a town with only a diner and a dive bar.

“The government.” Mumen clarifies.

“Oh, I don’t know.” King says. She’s fussing with her hair, which means she’s nervous. “Nothing ever really happens here and I like it that way, so I hope not.”

“You’ve got that right.” Sai huffs. “This is the most boring town in the world. I told myself I’d never come back here, yet look where I am. You two are the only good things I’ve got in this godforsaken town.”

“I’m touched.” King says as she puts her menu down.

“Why don’t you start martial arts with Bang again?” Mumen says. “You used to be one of her top students.”

“I don’t know.” Sai says. She could say she doesn’t have the time, but that’s a lie. She just doesn’t care about anything anymore like she used to. It’s so much effort and energy she doesn’t have, for so little reward. She has to focus what energy she has on her animals, and lambing season is coming up soon.

Mumen smacks her menu down on the table, startling King half to death and making Saitama jump. “Let’s go to the disco this Friday night.” Mumen says. “You used to love that.”

Saitama wants to say no, but her two best friends are giving her the puppy dog eyes and she realizes she never really stood a chance. “Okay.”

Their matching smiles makes her want to try. She can pull herself together for their sakes. It’s just one night right?

Someone clears their throat, and the three of them look up to see their waiter staring at them.

“Good afternoon Lilly.” Mumen chirps amicably. “Where’s Fubuki?’

“Town Hall. We aren’t always glued at the hip you know.” Lilly replies.

All Lilly gets in response is three sets of disbelieving expressions, and he sputters. “Anyway what can I get you girls?”

“I’ll have the Cobb salad please.” Mumen says while cleaning her glasses.

“Disco fries.” Saitama says. “Oh, and green tea.”

“What about you King?” Lilly asks, reaching across to grab their menus.

King fakes contemplation as she settles herself enough to order. Speaking has never been her strong suit. “Chocolate chip pancakes and a vanilla milkshake.”

“You got it.” Lilly says, making his way to the kitchen.

Mumen is giving King a look. “King that’s so much sugar.”

King just shrugs, and Saitama tries to not be jealous of the way her hair flows as she moves. Saitama can never get her hair to cooperate, and it just seems to stick every which way.

“Mumen we are 25, we can eat what we want.” Sai says. “It’s not our fault you already eat like a suburban mother of 2.”

Mumen grumbles something about fiber and protein and daily sugar allowances, but lets it slide. They fall into comfortable silence for a while as Mumen sips her coffee. “So how are things at the station?” Saitama asks.

“Same as always.” Mumen says, moving to fix the cuffs on her uniform. “Got the Smith’s cat out of a tree yesterday, and the day before that I caught some kids spray painting on the side of the library and brought them in. They’ll probably just get community service.”

“What’d they spray paint?” King asks.

“It was inappropriate.” Mumen sighs.

King and Saitama share a look and nod; it was definitely dicks.

“Is the chief letting you respond to calls yet?” Sai asked. Mumen seemed to deflate a little at the question, but bounces back quickly.

“No. I’m happy to be out of the office at last but he still only lets me patrol. Even though I graduated with top marks at the police academy he still thinks I need to be protected. I want to be out there with the boys protecting people and upholding justice.”

“Fuck the patriarchy.” Saitama says.

“Don’t curse!” Mumen says. “… but screw the patriarchy.”

“You’ll get there someday Mumen. You’ve come this far after all.” King says.

“Thanks King. You two have always believed I could do this even when no one else did, and it means a lot.” Mumen says.

Saitama realizes this is supposed to be a deep moment between friends, but she doesn’t know what to say in response. She just gives Mumen a thumbs up.

Lilly returns with their drinks and they gossip a little, about who’s been seen with who and what recent scandals have unfolded. Lilly always knows all the juicy bits. More people come into the diner and Lilly has to leave to tend to them, and the conversation wanes. The silence is comfortable, and Saitama lets herself lean into King. She feels better in her friend’s company. It’s like they make her temporarily whole again, and even for just a few fleeting moments, she’s happy. She doesn’t have to pretend to smile and laugh, and while her joy is small and fluttering weakly, it’s genuine in their presence. Saitama finds herself wishing she could always have them around just so she wouldn’t have to be sad anymore. It’s a selfish wish and she scolds herself for it. Mumen and King have their own lives and don’t have time to babysit her dysfunctional ass.

Lilly gets a hero’s welcome when he brings the food and they dig in. King watches Saitama devour her disco fries with a mixture of fascination and disgust. Saitama makes an obscene gesture while licking gravy and melted cheese out from between her fingers and Mumen snorts her drink. While Mumen is laughing and suffering with coffee up her nose Saitama turns to waggle her eyebrows at King and finds that her friend is already flushed bright red, her heart beating loudly.

“Sai don’t be vulgar.” King says, hand clutching at her imaginary pearls. Mumen groans as she blows coffee out of her nose. Saitama laughs so hard she can’t breathe.

Mumen’s lunch break ends and Saitama lingers in their parting hug too long, not realizing how touch starved she was until Mumen wrapped her arms around her. For a blissful moment, everything is okay. Mumen lets her linger, and makes Sai promise to come visit her apartment soon for dinner. King has to head out as well and Saitama feels like this was over far too soon. As she climbs into her truck the fleeting happiness is already snuffed out, replaced by the usual numbness. She sighs and lets her head drop to the steering wheel. She’s so tired all of a sudden. She perks up a bit when she remembers she brought her coupons with her, and decides that since she’s already in town she might as well go to the store.

When Saitama gets home it’s a little after 2 in the afternoon. The sheep baa at her from the fence as she brings her groceries into the house. She nearly trips over Rover as he bounces around her feet at the front door, but manages to get the groceries safely onto the counter. She unpacks them methodically as she plans out what she’ll make for dinner.

When she steps outside again bundled in warm clothes she suddenly remembers the comet. How could she forget? She considers walking, but it crashed a fair distance away and the mud and snow isn’t the best to walk through. She’ll take Moon.

She pulls the old barn door open with a grunt and breathes in the smell of hay and manure. She thinks barn smell is a good smell, but that’s probably just because she’s associated it with the good things that come with it. The sheep are all outside despite the cold, but her old gelding Moon and her cow Pudding are both inside. She coos at them and they watch her with large eyes as she moves about the barn.

Saitama grooms Moon on autopilot, just spacing from one half-thought to another. She rubs the brush in circles over his thick winter coat to get up the dirt, then brushes the fur back down smooth. This time of year he’s more fuzzball then horse, and it takes a while to get him clean. She fights the snarls out of his mane and tail with an old brush that’s lost multiple bristles to these battles. She’s got white hairs all over her coat by the time she’s done, but that’s nothing new. It’s hard to imagine looking at Moon now that he was once dark grey and covered in dapples, as age had rendered him white as the snow outside the barn. She tacks up slower than she’d like since the cold is making her fingers stiff. It’s only when she hops up into the saddle that she remembers what she’s doing. She feels a buzz of excitement as she leads Moon out of the barn and gets on.

Saitama nudges Moon forward, the old horse picking up a fast trot into the forest. The rhythm of his trotting is soothing and Sai lets herself fall into the pattern of posting in the saddle. Saitama’s not sure exactly which direction to go. There’s miles of forest around her, and the meteor could be anywhere. At the first fork in the trail she turns Moon towards the direction she remembers the comet streaking across the sky. The trail winds its way up a hill and at the top of the rise the forest spreads out below her. The sun breaks out of the clouds and the forest shines beautifully for a few brief moments. She’s known this forest all her life, yet somehow it still manages to amaze her. Sai pulls her horse to a stop just to observe. The clouds close over the sun again and the moment passes, the forest once again dim. It’s this sudden stillness that allows her to spot the movement of smoke twisting above the trees to the east.

“That must be it” she says, patting Moon on the shoulder. “C’mon fuzzball let’s go.” It takes a little convincing to get Moon off the trail towards the smoke and they pick their way through the trees at a slow trot. As they get closer Sai can smell the smoke, and she spurs Moon forward.

Saitama starts seeing trees with the tops shorn off. Suddenly there are whole trees ripped in half, some still smoking. She stops Moon to gape at the huge pines that have been reduced to splinters. The trees are easily three times her width, yet the comet destroyed them like they were merely toothpicks. She finds herself grateful for the melting snow- or else there might have been a forest fire. This isn’t even where most of the smoke is coming from though; the bulk of it lies ahead. The fallen trees are smoldering, the smoke thick. She can see that there’s some sort of crater, but so many trees have fallen around it that it’s obscured from her vision. She slides off Moon’s back and walks ahead of him, suddenly feeling apprehensive.

Saitama picks her way to the edge of the crater, her feet sinking into churned up slush and mud. She easily pushes a chuck of tree out of her way, climbing over massive pine boughs and pulling her legs out of the deep mud. She’s glad she tied her boots on tight or she would have lost them already. The air smells strongly of earth and smoke. She checks to make sure Moon is waiting for her by the edge, and he is. He’s a good horse. Reassured, she pushes her way deeper into the crater, but she still doesn’t see anything resembling a space rock. Saitama climbs on top of a huge tree trunk and nearly falls off in shock. There’s a person down at the bottom of the crater, passed out in the mud.

“Are you okay?!” Saitama shouts. No response. ‘Obviously they are not okay you stupid idiot’ she thinks to herself as she jumps down. What are they doing here? Are they even still alive? What is she going to do with a dead body?

Saitama rushes over next to them, kneeling down to feel for a pulse when she freezes stiff. There’s something wrong. Something about the planes of their face is off. They’ve got metal pieces on the sides of their cheeks that remind her of cat whiskers, but that she’s certainly never seen on a person before. She looks over the body in front of her and sees chrome where skin should be. Chrome? She grabs their wide shoulders and pulls, and holy shit this person is heavy. It suddenly dawns on her why this person is at the bottom of the crater. There should be a rock here, but there isn’t. There’s just this person.

They are the comet.

It wasn’t a meteor at all.

“Holy fucking shit.” Saitama says. She pulls the person (robot? cyborg?? alien???) up to her chest and tugs, but the mud is half frozen and they are stuck fast. Saitama puts more force into pulling incrementally, worried about hurting them with her strength. Suddenly they burst free and Saitama falls back on her ass, several hundred pounds of muddy robot in her lap.

“HOLY FUCKING SHIT” Saitama yells. Moon snorts at her in the distance, clearly not understanding what the silly human is freaking out about. The robot in her lap suddenly gasps in a breath and Saitama nearly jumps out of her skin. They’re alive! Okay, time to focus. This person (?) needs help and she’s got to get herself together.

“Hey, uh I don’t know if you know English, but I’m here to help okay? I’m going to lift you up now.” Sai hauls the bot onto her back and slowly crawls up out of the crater, cursing whenever she slips back down through the mud or gets jabbed by splintered wood. It’s slow going, and by the time she makes it back to Moon it’s nearly sundown. She considers putting the bot up on the horses back, but Moon is old and she’s fairly certain her passenger is too heavy for him. Sai hefts the cyborg back up where they’d been slipping down her back and grabs Moon’s reins.

“C’mon Moon this is going be a long walk home” Saitama sighs. It’s a slow trudge through the woods. The robot isn’t too heavy, but the ground is slippery and it’s rapidly getting dark. Saitama is tired and scraped up and there’s cold mud in her boots. She’s nothing if not stubborn and determined however. She just has to try to make this hike a little more pleasant. Saitama clears her throat and starts singing to herself.

“Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk I’m a woman’s man: no time to talk Music loud and women warm, I’ve been kicked around Since I was born And now it’s all right, it’s okay And you may look the other way We can try to understand The New York Times’ effect on man Whether you’re a brother or whether you’re a mother You’re stayin’ alive, stayin’ alive Feel the city breakin’ and everybody shakin’ And we’re stayin’ alive, stayin’ alive Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin’ alive, stayin’ alive Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin’ alive”

She sings in rhythm with her steps. One foot in front of the other, over and over. She listens to the squish of Moon’s hooves stepping over the wet earth, and the steady breathing of the cyborg. Eventually Moon starts tugging on the reins and Saitama looks up from her feet. Her barn stands in front of her and it is a damn welcome sight.

“We made it, we’re alive! You are still alive, right?” She jostles her passenger and receives a groan in response. Still kicking then.

Saitama struggles to pry open the old barn door while hunched over and supporting the bot with one hand but she manages. The dimly lit interior of the barn is a welcome relief to the blackness outside. She lays the bot down on some hay bales and rushes to put Moon away and get the barn closed up. She ignores the sheep yelling at her for dinner and digs several rag towels out of a trunk. She rubs the mud off best she can. She didn’t notice before because of the mud and adrenaline but the bot is 100% stark naked. Not that she really cares. Once she’s gotten the robot halfway clean she quickly feeds the animals, spilling grain on the floor in her haste. Whatever, let the mice have a party tonight. The cat will take care of it. She scoops the bot up and gasps when a metal hand weakly grips her coat. The bot’s face contorts and their eyes flutter, and Saitama books it for the house. Rover is unusually quiet when she bursts through the door. She places the bot down on the couch and drapes a blanket over them. Their long legs hang off the end of the couch and she pulls a chair over for their feet to rest on. She grabs her old space heater and plugs it in. It doesn’t turn on. Saitama gives it a kick and it rumbles to life. She sticks the end of the space heater under the cyborgs blanket, fire hazard be damned. Saitama hovers by the side of the couch. She didn’t plan ahead and now she’s not sure what to do about the alien in her living room. They seem to be injured somehow, even though she hadn’t seen anything glaring while scraping the mud off. A train on the nearby tracks sounds its horn loudly through the night and Saitama considers her options. None of them seem particularly good. In the end she drags her comforter downstairs to the living room and makes a nest besides the couch. Rover pushes in besides her and sniffs at the metal hand of their house guest. The bot seems to be asleep, and she decides to let them rest. Do robots even need sleep? She’s pretty sure they don’t. They shouldn’t need to breathe either. Maybe not a bot after all.

She watches them breathe for a while, processing as her brain seems to stall over the anomaly in front of her. Part organic, part machine. A cyborg. In her living room. On her couch. It’s something straight out of science fiction. This is like waking up to find Optimus Prime and Luke Skywalker camping out in her barn. Feeling a little overwhelmed, she turns the TV on with the volume low. She ends up watching Star Trek reruns, which only serves to make her situation feel even more surreal. There’s an ET sleeping on her couch. Slowly, she reaches out to press her hand to the cyborg’s. It’s cool and solid and very real.

She’s exhausted but knows that if she smokes to sleep she’ll sleep heavy, and she’s worried about the cyborg waking up in distress. She’ll just have to deal. Saitama turns off the space heater once the cyborg isn’t cold to the touch, not sure if the cyborg can overheat but also not sure if they were supposed to be that cold. She’s not really sure if she’s helping or not. Rover snores softly and Saitama pets him. Time passes and she dozes off, but never for more than an hour at a time. Apparently sheltering extraterrestrials in her home does nothing to help with her insomnia. The next time she blinks awake again the sky is violet and peach between the ivory curtains. As the sun rises and the light of day brings the cyborg’s sleeping face into soft focus, Saitama feels for the first time with certainty that this is real. She huffs out a laugh and looks up at the cracked ceiling.

“Theo, Ace, you’re not going to believe this.”

[r2dtoofine-blog]

all of them for the headcanons thing

((holy damn anon al-fuckin-righty *cracks knuckles*

Hair- Case’s jet black hair is thick, soft and full of cowlicks. Honestly, you need a ton of product to keep his hair presentable but you know he’d never give time for that (unless for his *cough*wedding*cough* maybe). Right now he’s being lazy with his appearance which isn’t really a new occurrence but his hair is getting kind of long. He could actually probably have a little pony tail if he ever thought to do that. srs hes almost got emo bangs he NEEDS a haircut. save my boy. p.s. he only has hair on his head + eyebrows, eyelashes and facial hair is only possible to the extent of his sideburns tbh. the rest of his body is as bare and soft as a baby’s bottom.p.p.s. his eyebrows are a little bushy but have a soft shape to them ;)Eyes- I just realized I’ve never described eyes before other than colour, I actually had to look up terms. What I think applies is that he has rather large, gently hooded eyes. He’s got long, thick eyelashes to shade the just almost opaque solid colours of his entire eyeball. He really doesn’t have a visible pupil but where they would be, it glows just barely noticeably purple. His eyes do swap colour usually when he’s having a psionic fit or when he just wants to make them do it on purpose for effect or fun. my boy’s got disco eyes over them bags.Mouth- He’s got lips that are kissable af. that is, if he took care of them more so they weren’t chapped from his habit of nibbling on them. His lips are plump and his upper lip is almost heart-shaped. They ARE black like it says in the comic but is a softer black that matches well with his skin. His mouth is usually drawn into a bitch face though like he’s always annoyed which might be true most of the time honestly. When he smiles casually, it’s usually just a tight-lipped almost frown of a smile you get me? His full smiles though, are toothy and big, showing off his fangs and happiness together. (snark is usually followed by a fang-filled smirk though) Face- Hmm he’s got really nice cheekbones and a gentle jawline without a very pronounced forehead. His nose is straight and just barely pointed downward if you look closely enough and a round chin. His ears are split with his duality theme too~ his ears are a little large and pointed with an extra little echoing ear behind and a little below the working one. He’s got four piercings in each working ear(lobe and that upper ear part i dont know the name for lmao).(how tf do you describe a face tbh)Skin- Case has light grey skin with just light yellow for blush and blemishes. He doesn’t blush much really even when he feels like he’s blushing a lot his face just doesn’t get banana coloured. His skin feels mostly soft but he has his fair callusing on his hands, knees and elbows and feet. I headcanon that trolls have tougher skin so his skin does feel thicker than a humans if you were to compare them side-by-side. His scars from in the game vanished upon revival on earth but he’s gotten new, (tw self harm) smaller scars from his nails and teeth. Little pricks and half moons and long scars on his torso from his nails and only faint marks on his hands from his teeth that can be easily looked over or taken as accidental scrapes. wow sorry. moving on. Build- Case is a skinny boy. he’s 5′9″ and a twig with bones way too weak for a troll. this boy needs his calcium. He’s not all that muscular but not necessarily all fat either. His shoulders are slightly narrow with just slight hips to match and he has an average to small sized rib-cage and his legs are long and pretty. I wish i could describe his body better but i think that’s pretty much it lmao ask for specific detail if you want more in ims or ask or sth. Chest- The only definition in his chest is of his ribs. Case has just gentle pectoral muscles and a soft outline of where his abs could be. He doesn’t have any nipples but he does have grubscars along up and down the sides of his torso; three vaguely circular dark scars on each side that are (nsfw) gently sensitive oo la la.Groin- (nsfw? the whole paragraph tbh) uh okay so i guess ill start with his bulge. its tentacle-esque, just get that out of the way. Its about 7-8 inches in length, a little thicker than average and the same mustard colour of his blood. it has little pill-shaped bumps? up the middle and sides of the base of his bulge ending a little below the middle of it but other than that its smooth and blemish-less. He does have a nook too, complete with a clitoris just because fuck it really. his clitoris and the lips of his nook echo the theme of his bulge in that theyre yellow like his blood as well as uh inside. moving on.He’s got a cute lil ass thats small and only a little muscular and a lot boney, and thats all there really is to say on the matter. hands-case has nice piano-players fingers with light callouses. his knuckles arent very pronounced and his nails are long, dull with wear and unkempt. his nails mimic the colour of his horns and are very strong, meant to be like claws if sharpened properly. his hands only sweat when hes super nervous and then only a little bit but hell still nervously wipe his hands on his pants? legs-his legs are nice and long for his height and his knees are scraped up and rounded. his thighs arent very filled out and are mostly muscle from all the stairs in his office and on campus plushe doesnt eat enough to gain more fat than that tbh. pray for him. stance-wise hes usually laid back LOOKING so his legs just need to make up the balance for his slouched back.feet-his feet are average sized like probably mens 8 or 9? idfk but his toes curl inwards with the same type of nails that are on his hands if only a little thicker because theyre his back “claws” you know? hes slightly pidgeon-toed and when he relaxes he does prefer to lean on his left side. what else do i even put here. his feet are usually cold af ill just put that here too.other-his horns are grown layer by layer like a plant tbh but theyre made of about the same material as his nails only thicker and can also be sharpened if properly taken care of. his horns are not hollow and they do not have nerve-endings. his doubled horns grow side by side like a crown on his head with his innermost twins being about half the length of the outer ones. he doesnt take much care of them so theyre pretty rough and definitely not perfect looking. (though he did take care of them before his wedding, they usually reflect how disheveled the rest of him looks)

there. there we go.

[tayegi]

Equilibrium Ch. 9

Previous Chapters: Prologue Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8 

Next Chapter: Ch 10

Word Count: 2,744

A week later, you come home to find your two boys playing video games on the couch. It’s been a long day at work and you’ve been locked to your desk way longer than your usual hours. It feels so good to finally come home and blow off some steam with your boyfriends.

“I’m home,” you announce in the doorway as you kick off your painful heels and massage your cramping neck. Man, a hot bath and a glass of wine sounds so good right now.

“Hey, you’re back late,” Jungkook casually calls from the living room as he makes his avatar smash Jimin’s off the cliff.

The older man curses and concentrates too hard on restarting to greet you properly. You hover in the room for a moment, but it becomes apparent that Jimin’s too absorbed in the game to pay you any attention. Slightly disappointed by the turn of events, you try again.

“We had issues with the clients at work. I feel so exhausted… I think I’m going to take a bath now.”

“Hmm that sucks,” Jimin half-heartedly says, but it’s clear that he’s not listening.

“Does anyone care to join me…?” You offer, making one last ditch attempt to capture their attention.

“I showered this morning,” Jimin says, the insinuation behind your words slipping over his head entirely.

Jungkook, the more sex-crazed of the two, perks up briefly, “Join you…? Can you wait until the end of this game, jagi?”

But you huff with annoyance and roll your eyes, “Forget it, Kookie. Just enjoy your game.” And with that, you lock yourself in the bathroom, determined to drown your sorrows in lavender bath bombs.

When you wake up the next morning, you’re not surprised to find Jungkook curled around you in bed. At this point, he’s taken over Jimin’s spot in the middle, up to a point where he’s given up on coming up with flimsy excuses for climbing over Jimin’s unconscious body in the middle of the night entirely. He settles for bed every night in the direct middle, and you wake up every morning to find his arms around your waist and his erection against your ass. Today is no different.

There is an unsettling feeling in your chest that has been following you like a shadow for the last few weeks, ever since Jimin came home. At night, Jungkook seems so cuddly and open with you, but during the day, he pays you no heed in order to focus all of his attention on Jimin. Hell, it almost feels like you’ve been fighting sometimes—like the awkward tension that lingers after a vicious blowout. This entire time, it has never slipped your mind that Jungkook is your competition… And maybe he’s finally realizing this as well?

Suddenly, the younger man shifts in his sleeping, groaning as he nuzzles his face into the crook of your neck. Every hair on your body stands in response to his seemingly affectionate touch. What’s he playing at? Could this lovey-dovey thing really just be an act? To disarm your suspicions and steal Jimin from right under your nose?

You’re being paranoid, you try to reassure yourself. This type of thought is beyond crazy. You’ve gotten to know Jungkook better these past weeks, and he’s not that type of person… or are you just a fool to trust him?

“Jagi,” Jungkook whispers against your neck, startling you from your thoughts.

Shit. He’s now awake. You roll over with a sinking stomach, and flash him a tight smile, “Good morn—”

But Jungkook interrupts you before you can finish your sentence with a heated kiss. You flinch back at once with a little shriek, “Ugh, Jungkook!”

He chuckles and weaves his fingers through your hair to drag you forward for another kiss. You splutter and claw at his chest to ward off his kiss, protesting wildly about your unflattering morning breath.

A bell-like burst of laughter catches your attention. You wrench your face away from Jungkook’s grip to stare up at a newly awakened Jimin. Instinctively, your mouth splits into a wide grin. He smiles back, and his eyes linger on the plush redness of your lips. You know what he’s going to do a second before he does it, and your eyes flutter shut in giddy anticipation.

A few seconds pass before you realize that it’s taking him way too long to kiss you. You slowly peek through your eyelashes and frown in confusion at the sight of dark hair directly in front of your face. You blink a few times, before you finally register the back of Jungkook’s head and the source of the slick sounds in the background.

He is kissing Jimin. It probably isn’t a big deal, and it can’t have been intentional, you know this logically, but you can’t stop the rage boiling in the pit of your stomach.

Fucking Jeon Jungkook has stolen your kiss.

Suddenly, a memory of the first time you met him flashes across your mind.

You finish that semester with Jimin falling harder and harder for the older man with each passing day. When the new semester rolls by, you find yourself in love for the first time in your adult life. And it grows harder and harder to maintain the façade of friendship when all you ever want to do is hold him in your arms.

Your secret consumes you to such an extent that you find it teetering on the tip of your tongue, threatening to burst from your ribcage every time you see him. But somehow, you find the strength to choke it back and keep it to yourself. Because it is impossible for someone like Park Jimin to return your feelings. And you refuse to lose the most important person in your life just because you couldn’t keep it together.

And besides… It’s not so bad just being his friend. It’s rewarding enough just to have him in your life… Or so you think until two months into the new semester and you meet his new tutoring charge for the first time…

Jimin had been raving about the underclassman he’s been tutoring to you for the longest time. All you hear from him is a constant barrage of how great Jeon Jungkook is; how handsome; how talented, etc. You patiently hear him out, and at first you don’t really mind. It’s cute how much Jimin cares for and mentors the younger man. You don’t think twice about his new obsession until Jimin finally introduces the two of you.

“You’re going to love him,” he gushes to you as he leads you down the street to the café where you’re supposed to meet this mysterious Jeon Jungkook.

“I’m sure I will,” you agree, smiling faintly at the sight of his enthusiasm. Jimin is a literal angel on earth, and anyone who he raves about must be a truly amazing person. You’re picturing Jungkook as a younger version of Jimin—same round cheeks and moon crescent shaped eyes, but maybe just a few inches shorter.

As a result, you nearly walk clear past the table Jimin stops at, completely looking past the broad, dark-haired man who sits there until Jimin yanks you back. “Whoa, we’re here!”

You whirl around in shock to find Jimin gleefully embracing the dark-haired man, who tolerates the hug with a wince. Could this possibly be Jeon Jungkook?

Your eyes widen as you stare him up and down in shock. Even while sitting down, you can tell that he’s tall, and muscles ripple under his thin white t-shirt as he awkwardly pats Jimin’s back. Your eyes travel along the bulging veins in his forearms, up his wide shoulders to his startlingly handsome face. Large, perfectly formed brown doe eyes stare back at you in curiosity.

You blush at having been caught and instantly drop your gaze, stepping back to twiddle your thumbs in discomfort.

“Hyung, is that your friend?”

“Hmm?” Jimin pulls away from the hug in surprise, as though remembering you for the first time, “Ah, that’s right! This is my close friend, ____. ____, please meet Jeon Jungkook.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Jungkook-ssi,” you say, offering him your hand with a smile.

The brunette man’s eyes scan you from head to toe before he reluctantly takes your offered hand, clearly unimpressed by what he sees. “You too.”

Your face heats up under his blatant inspection. It suddenly feels like you’re back in high school again, with all the cute, popular boys sneering at you in derision. Sweat beads at your hairline, and you’d do anything to run from the situation. But Jimin doesn’t seem to notice and eagerly takes a seat at Jungkook’s side of the table.

“Aigo! Jungkookie, you’re getting more and more handsome every day! What do you eat to get so good-looking?”

Jungkook peels the older man’s arm from around his neck with a huff, “Ah hyung, you’re exaggerating.”

Unexpectedly, Jimin bursts into a peal of tinkering laughter and begins to pester the younger man with more force. You’re left to awkwardly stand before them in the crowded café until a stranger bumps into you from behind and you have no choice but to take a seat across from them. There, you politely wait another minute for either of them to speak to you, but it never happens, so you have to flag down the waiter on your own to order a coffee.

“Jungkook used to be an idol,” Jimin beams, finally looking away from Jungkook long enough to address you.

The younger man huffs in frustration, “No, I was only a trainee.”

“He’s also an athlete!” Jimin exclaims, completely undeterred, “He’s on a soccer scholarship right now, and he’s on the varsity team, despite being so young!”

“Oh my god, Jimin please stop bragging.”

But the older man only laughs and leans in to nuzzle his nose into the crook of Jungkook’s neck, “I’m just proud of you. You’re so good at everything, my golden maknae.”

For some reason, your stomach twists at the way he says those words. It’s the softness of his tone, the tightness of his grip around Jungkook, and the sheer adoration in his eyes…

It all hits you like a ton of bricks.

The way Jimin looks at Jungkook… It’s the same way you look at him.

Jimin isn’t just fond of Jungkook as a mentee… He likes him.

Panic flares in your system before it’s quickly eaten away by ugly jealousy. The fiery envy licks at every inch of you, eating you up until all you can see is green. Jeon Jungkook doesn’t deserve your Park Jimin. He’s an idiotic, superficial child, viewing people as pieces of meat for his inspection, yet not appreciating Jimin’s mere presence. Does he even know what you would do—how you would kill—for a single look like the one Jimin is giving him? You would treasure the moment forever if Jimin touched you with even half the affection he is touching Jungkook. And yet, Jungkook does not care. That fucking ungrateful little brat.

“____? ____-ah?” Jimin calls out, breaking you from your reverie.

You shake your head to clear the dark thoughts, “Wh-what?”

His perfect brows crinkle into a frown, “Jungkook was asking you a question.”

You glance over to find the younger man staring at you with a raised brow. Before you can help yourself, anger flushes through you again. You purse your lips tightly, “Sorry, I got a bit distracted. What did you say?”

“I was just asking how old you are.”

You tell him with a forced smile.

“Oh, so we’re the same age?” he says in surprise, “How come I’ve never seen you in any of my classes?”

“I skipped a grade in high school,” you explain, “So I’m the year above you.”

“Ah, sure, but we’re still technically the same age, so let’s speak informally to each other okay?”

Your jaw nearly drops to the ground. Speak informally? At your first meeting? When you are clearly his senior? Is he fucking serious?! You glance over at Jimin in surprise, but he’s too busy affectionately ruffling Jungkook’s hair. Your throat constricts. You don’t dare to offend a person that means so much to him, even when he’s being so blatantly rude. So you have no choice but to nod your head.

“Thanks, ____-ah.”

Although your head is down, you can practically hear him smirking. Memories of high school flash across your mind. Back then, all the underclassmen spoke down to you. This is nothing new. But you’ve gotten so used to Jimin’s protection these past few months that indignation seeps through your shell of numbness. Still, this is someone Jimin cares about, and you have to do your best to play nice.

“So… um… what do you like to do in your free time?” you awkwardly attempt to make small talk.

To your surprise, Jungkook’s eyes narrow and he instantly looks on guard in reaction to the seemingly innocent question. “I’m a striker on the school’s soccer team. I used to dance competitively. I was an idol trainee in high school… Which one did you want to know about?”

“Wait, what?” you ask in confusion, startled by his brusque answer, “I don’t care about—” You stop mid-sentence, catching yourself in time. You sneak a quick peek at Jimin, then hurry to correct yourself, “I mean… That all sounds cool, but what do you do now?”

Again he bristles, “You mean, why did I quit training at the company? Why do I not compete anymore? Is that what you want to know?”

You shake your head, “No, I just wanted to know—”

“The phone numbers of the other soccer players?” he snorts in derision, “Or my number?”

The way he laughs after his comment makes it seem like he intends it as a joke. But although his mouth is laughing, his eyes clearly are not. “That’s not what I meant. Those are clearly just your jobs. But your work life doesn’t tell me anything about you as a person. So what do you do outside of work?”

“Work?” he repeats, the bitterness melting away at once and leaving genuine confusion, “What… what do you mean by that?”

“Just… what do you like?” you say for what feel likes the umpteenth time. You’re bewildered by how effortful this simple question seems to be, and you regret asking it, but it’s too late to retract the question now, “I mean, I know this probably doesn’t compare to being an athlete, but I’m good at studying and babysitting, which is how I made pocket money all throughout high school. I don’t think this defines me, though… So with you, Jungkook… What do you like?”

He blinks three times in rapid succession, then his eyes lock onto yours, as though seeing you for the first time. You waver under his intense gaze, but you refuse to back down and break eye contact. As the seconds tick by, heat rises up your neck, scorching your skin. Then, Jungkook finally responds.

“Computers,” he says in a voice so quiet, you have to strain to hear him.

“Computers?” you echo in surprise.

He hesitates, then nods once, as though embarrassed, “I’m good with technology,” he admits, “I like to tinker around with coding, and I’ve always been a good gamer.”

“You’re a gamer?” Jimin chimes in, catching onto that one word, as he’s zoned out of your boring, confusing conversation earlier, “Oh my god! That’s amazing! I game too! What games do you play, Jungkookie-ah?!”

He lingers his eyes on you for another second before Jungkook tears his attention back to Jimin, “I used to play console games, but now it’s mostly computer ones.”

“Really?” Hearts practically bloom from his eyes, “That is so awesome! We should play together!” He raves, jumping forward to catch Jungkook in a fierce embrace.

Your stomach plummets at the over-the-top display of affection. Jimin has never touched you like this before. You’re suddenly helpless against the flood of jealousy that hits you with the impact of a tsunami. Fuck Jeon Jungkook. Does he really think he’s all that just because he’s danced before and can kick a ball around? Fuck him.

You thought you could be content with just being Jimin’s friend… But you’re not so sure anymore in the light of this new foe… You’ve got to move fast.

Author’s Note: The next few chapters are my absolute favorite in the entire series and they’re what inspired this fic in the first place, so I’m really excited! Stay tuned, my loves <3